Silent Tears
by The Dragon Lover
Summary: Kagome is an average teenage girl living in a house with her mother and brother, but when she has to transfer to a different school and leave her childhood friends behind, how will she deal with it? And is she REALLY so average? Swearing. DISCONTINUED.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **Inuyasha does _not _belong to me. If it did, would I be here right now, or would I be in Oahu, Hawaii enjoying my (_rich_)vacation?

DL: Heya! How are you? This is my _second_ Inuyasha fic I've uploaded to if you count the one in my 'Story Graveyard', and I would like to thank 'Striking Falcon' for finally giving me inspiration to write a story based on such a wonderful show. Her stories were_amazing._ Clap for her, if you please. (Claps) Also, this black feline beside me is Shadowpaw, and she shall be in the commentaries with me.

Shadowpaw: I'm not_all _black. My paws and the tip of my tail are white!

DL: Whatever. Also, the characters in the story will sometimes pop in. The characters that are in here are: Inuyasha, Kagome, Souta, Sesshoumaru, Sango, Miroku, Shippou, etc. But not necessarily in that order. There are really only _two _main characters in this story. And not the ones you expected when you clicked to read this. (Points at main characters on the top of the screen) This is a tribute to my friend, Whitney, who doesn't like how Inuyasha ended up, and for all of you Inuyasha fans who just _love _that hot youkai! (Did I just write that? Good lord…help me!)

Shadowpaw: Will ya stop beating around the bush and freakin' _get on with the story?!_

DL: Geez, alright, already! (Ahem) This is the first chapter of 'Silent Tears', and I hope you enjoy it.

**Warning: **This is my first Inuyasha story where I'm _really _focusing on writing it, so please don't flame me unless I have Inuyasha's last name misspelled or I get Kagome's eye color wrong (the latter because I'm making her eyes whatever color pleases me…meh, I know. Pitiful.)

_One does not embrace the leopard. _**– A Jabo (Liberia) Proverb**

The sunlight slowly crept into the window through the crack in the curtain with the encouragement of the birds' songs. It seemed to slink around like a cat until it reached her bed, and then enveloped the blanket as it settled on her. Kagome squinted her closed eyes against the sunlight and tried to block it, but it was her fault for having a window that faced the East. She tried to roll over and relax when a sharp ringing got her attention. She grumbled as she slammed her fist onto the alarm clock, getting angry as it wouldn't be quiet. She finally got it to shut up by knocking it off of the stand and sending it crashing to the floor. She gave a sigh of relief as she turned over and went back to sleep.

The trees by the shrine waved in the small breeze, with birds singing brightly towards the sun rising over the horizon. The songs seemed to fly in through Kagome's open window and tickle her ear as she slept soundly, in her silky smooth pajamas. She had stayed up late last night looking out of the window and thinking. She had gotten so tired that she barely got into her pajamas before she fell onto her bed, asleep before her head hit the pillow.

What was she thinking about?

She had been transferred from her old high school to another school, leaving her old friends behind. They promised to send emails and such, as well as to visit to check up on her, but…it was still sad for her to be leaving them. Now she would have to go through school and make new friends instead of hang out with the ones she's had since elementary.

Now, as she moved in her bed, her door slowly creaked open, and a figure walked into her room. It moved slowly, creeping up to the foot of her bed. It stopped as she stretched and mumbled something in her sleep, and waited until she was still again before it walked over and stood beside her bed. It held up something in its hand that looked strangely like a gun…

"_Wake up, sis!_"

Kagome's eyes snapped open only to be greeted by her brother's squirt gun. She sat up quickly and tried to guard her face as Souta ran off, laughing maniacally. She growled and yelled, "_Souta!_"

"What did you do to your sister _now_, Souta?" Their mother said as he walked into the kitchen snickering. He hid the squirt gun behind his back and replied quickly, "Nothing."

"Uh huh." She said doubtfully as Kagome yelled at him from upstairs. "And did you tell your sister that?"

"Uhh…" Souta scratched the back of his head nervously. "Heh heh…"

"Souta!" He turned at the sound of his name and yelped as an angry Kagome stood there, nostrils flaring, as water dripped from her wet pajamas. She pointed a finger at him and said, "You're gonna pay for that, you little brat!"

He ran in fear, and Kagome was about to chase after him when her mother said, "Aren't you forgetting what time it is, Kagome?" She stopped, blinking in confusion, and her mother pointed at the clock. Kagome stared at it for a moment, thinking, before something clicked…

"_Aah! I'm gonna be late!_"

As she ran back upstairs to get dressed, Souta poked his head into the kitchen and said, "Thanks for saving me, Mom!" She just nodded, a smile on her lips as Souta grabbed his lunch and his backpack and ran out the door.

Kagome rushed to get dressed as she mumbled, "Oh man, nice day to be late! I hope I'm not _too _late…" She shrugged off the idea as she tried to hop out of her room as she put her other shoe on her foot. She failed, however, as she became unbalanced and fell down, holding her head as her mother called worriedly, "Are you alright, dear?'

After she assured her mom she was 'fine', she shoved her foot into the shoe and ran down the stairs two at a time, nearly making her knees buckle as she landed on the ground floor and ran into the kitchen once more. She grabbed the lunch her mother made on the table, gave her a good-bye hug, and ran out the door listening to her mother yell, "Good luck, honey!"

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Kagome's troubles didn't end that morning, however. _No, siree_. She got lost as soon as she entered the building, leaving her frustrated as she tried to make sense of the map. She didn't notice where she was going as she stared at it, however, and ended up bumping into someone unintentionally.

She looked up and immediately said, "I'm sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going!"

The girl in front of her smiled as she looked at the flustered Kagome. She had dark brown that was almost black like Kagome's, except it was pulled up into a ponytail with a black scrunchie. She wore a shirt that suspiciously looked as if it was supposed to be a guys and regular blue jeans, with black sneakers that had a small pink touch. At least she wasn't_all _that tomboy looking.

"That's alright!" The girl nodded at her, and Kagome smiled gratefully as she explained her clumsiness. "I can't find my way to my first class, so I must have been too preoccupied…"

"How about I help you?"

"Really?" Kagome's eyes twinkled as the girl nodded. "Oh, thank you!"

"No prob. Oh," She held out her hand. "my name's Sango."

"I'm Kagome." She shook her hand with a smile as she thought, _I've already made a friend! Maybe this won't be so bad after all…_

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Surprisingly, Sango was in some of her classes, including her first. That made Kagome_extremely _happy, seeing as Sango was the only person she knew in this school. They even had lunch together, much to their delight. They were unprepared, however, for what happened a little while after they sat down…

"Who's that?" Kagome pointed at someone in the lunch line. Her new friend turned to get a better look as she saw who she meant. A guy stood there casually, wearing baggy coffee-colored jeans and a black t-shirt with something written on it. His white hair was unnaturally long for a guy, making Kagome wonder why he kept it so long. He seemed to be bored as he yawned and scratched one of his dog ears in tedium.

"Oh, him? His name's Inuyasha, part of the Taishou family. Although," Sango admitted as he picked off a piece of invisible lint off of his ear and flicked it away in annoyance, "he doesn't seem to try to be a part of it. Between his brother and his father, it's like World War III is going to happen or something."

"Brother?" Kagome wondered as she watched the hanyou go through the rest of the line. The girl in front of her nodded as she continued, "He has a half-brother, but they always get into fights. They don't seem to like each other much."

Kagome nodded quietly as she watched him pay for his lunch and began his walk towards the tables. Then, after a thought, she got up and walked towards him, causing a startled Sango to call her. She didn't stop, however, until the hanyou noticed that she was coming closer, and they stopped before each other as she looked at his face with curiosity. He seemed to be curious as well, although he tried to hide it, and he remained calm as she smiled at him. "Hi! I'm Kagome." She held out her hand in immediate acceptance.

He looked at her oddly, her kindness puzzling to him, and he mumbled distractedly, "I'm Inuyasha…"

She nodded, that sunny smile still on her face, as she asked, "Would you like to sit with me and my friend?"

Inuyasha seemed baffled by her behavior, but before he could say 'no' she said, "I'm new to this school, so I want to try to meet as many people as possible!" After a moment, she added, "That is, if you don't have something better to do."

He couldn't exactly find a reason to say no to her, and so he sighed in defeat and shrugged, but he couldn't help but smile slightly as she said warmly, "Great!" She gently grabbed his arm and pulled him along until she returned to the surprised Sango with an equally shocked hanyou. She gestured for him to sit down, and he awkwardly found a spot beside Kagome as she sat down, smiling triumphantly.

As Inuyasha tried to adjust to his new surroundings, Kagome peered at his shirt curiously and asked him, "What does your shirt say?"

"What? You mean this?" He held it up slightly so she could have a better look at it. "It's the name of my band!"

"You have a band?" Kagome asked incredulously as she read the words 'Tetsusaiga'. The hanyou beside her nodded, talking with some chicken in his mouth, "We're not _that _famous, but we still have some fans. Our bass player made these shirts and –"

"Can you at least_swallow _it before you spray it all over us?" Sango complained, ignoring her friend's giggling as Inuyasha rolled his eyes and gulped it down quickly. He glared at her and growled, "As I was saying…"

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Lunch was actually really good, considering Kagome had gained a new friend. Well, he wasn't _exactly _a friend, but he seemed to smile a little whenever they laughed at one of his jokes. He liked the attention he got from them, secretly hoping that they would invite him more often. He didn't question why he suddenly seemed to be so open to those two, but it must have been the way that Kagome could make him smile. It seemed that she could make anyone smile with her wonderful laugh, and Sango actually told Inuyasha that behind Kagome's back as she went to go get more to drink.

He was a bit sorry he didn't have a class with either of them before lunch, but he did have the one after that as well as the end of the day with both of them. It seemed to be a stroke of pure luck that he was approached by Kagome and earned two quick friends. He wondered if that was how she always got friends, and he tried to imagine how many other friends she might have. When he asked her at lunch before they left, however, she said she had only three other friends from her childhood, which surprised the hanyou.

As he walked with them to the next class, he groaned inwardly as he remembered why he was so irritated before he met Kagome. The class after lunch was History class, and although that wasn't the reason he was so annoyed it didn't help in the least.

As Kagome and Sango followed the hanyou into the classroom, she could feel the sudden tension coming from her newer friend. She looked up at him in surprise as he seemed to suddenly get into 'ticked' mode. She looked at Sango to question her, but she seemed as shocked as she was. She looked back at the hanyou only to see what upset him so…

"Hello, hanyou. Are these _humans_ your friends as well?"

Even just hearing his voice made Kagome stress out a bit as she heard the loathing meant especially for Inuyasha. It was hard to see what he was thinking by looking at his stone face, but it rang loud and clear in his taunt that he disliked Inuyasha for all he was worth. He had long bluish-silver hair that was even _longer _than Inuyasha's, striking Kagome as weird, and it seemed to flow behind him slightly even though there was no wind. His cold, calculating golden eyes were like two suns trying to burn Inuyasha, as if by simply glaring at him could smite him from existence. He wore a long-sleeved white shirt with black stripes on the end of his sleeves and a pair of white pants, with his tail slung over his shoulder like the fur some humans wore as scarves. The magenta stripes on his face gave a warning to everyone of the poison his claws held, making Kagome subconsciously take a small step back. He smirked at her as he saw this, making her shiver under his gaze. He then returned his glare to the hanyou before him as Inuyasha spat, "_Sesshoumaru_…"

A small intake of air alerted Kagome to look at Sango as realization lighted her face. She whispered in her ear, "That's Inuyasha's brother. Well, half-brother, really. He's completely youkai, and he likes to think of Inuyasha as beneath him and humans along with him."

Kagome nodded as the teacher was immediately standing beside them as she told them, "No fighting now, Taishou brothers. I don't want a mess in my classroom today."

Inuyasha just gave a 'keh' and crossed his arms angrily, earning a smirk from Sesshoumaru as he walked to his seat. Inuyasha grumbled something nasty as he sat down rather roughly, his hands slightly clenched into fists. Sango grabbed Kagome's arm and sat her in an empty desk beside her, which was (fortunately) two seats behind Inuyasha and (unfortunately) just to the right of his brother. She glanced uneasily at the youkai, immediately looking away as he stared at her coldly. She was a bit nervous around him, especially since he felt so powerful. She wondered how such a stubborn, slightly loud person like Inuyasha could possibly be related to him.

_I just hope this class ends soon… _She couldn't help but give Sango a frightened glance, only feeling a little better when her friend gave her an encouraging smile.

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Kagome was better by the end of the day, since she had a few more classes with Sango, and as they were finally released from the confines of the building she was begging Inuyasha to see his band. "Can't I _please _come see them? I've never seen a band in person before!"

Inuyasha groaned reluctantly, grumbling, "That wouldn't be a good idea, since we train close to that bastard's workshop."

"Who's workshop?"

The hanyou sighed at Kagome's bubbling curiosity and answered, "My half-brother's. He's usually in there doing whatever the hell he does in there."

"You mean he isn't in your band as well?"

"_Ha!_" Inuyasha couldn't help but laugh at the idea of Sesshoumaru in a band. "I don't think he's the type for that, or sharing the same _breathing space _with a hanyou and his friends. Besides," He smirked and put his hands behind his head, "why would I want him in _my _band, anyways?"

"Well, he's still your brother, isn't he?" Kagome frowned when she only gained a grunt in response, so she huffed and said, "Fine, but can I _at least _come and check it out?"

"…Eh, alright,_fine. _But don't say I didn't warn you –"

"_Yeah!_"

Inuyasha covered his ears in pain, as did Sango as Kagome cheered happily. After a moment, though, she looked at them and blinked in confusion, before realizing and bowing her head. "I'm sorry! I was just really excited."

"I'm sure you are…" Inuyasha grumbled as his hands left his ears, and he began to walk down the sidewalk. The spirited teen asked him, "Is this the way to your house, Inuyasha-san?"

He stopped and thought for a moment, before he answered, "Yeah…" He looked at the two girls watching him expectantly, and he said, "It's pretty far, though. I usually walk, but I don't know now with you two."

Sango brightened up immediately and said, "I have an idea! We can use my car." Kagome smiled at her and agreed, "That's perfect!"

Inuyasha, however, sighed and shook his head. "I don't think I should; I'm used to walking home anyways."

He went to turn away when Kagome grabbed his arm with a 'wait!' He looked at her in surprise as she pleaded, "Don't go, Inuyasha!" She looked at Sango with a silent earnest as her friend noticed she wanted help and said, "We have enough room, and it will take a lot less time than just walking!"

As the hanyou looked at Kagome with the begging look on her face, he thought about it for a moment, before he sighed and shrugged. "Why not?" He was caught unawares as Kagome smiled and hugged him, saying, "Great!" She quickly let go and followed Sango to her car as Inuyasha stood there in shock, wondering what she had just done.

Kagome turned and called back to him, "Come on, Inuyasha-san! Let's go!"

He snapped out of it and quickly got to the car. It was a red Mustang as it reflected the sunlight with a bright, clean shine. They all got in, Inuyasha last as he warily stepped into the vehicle. She got out of the parking space and was on the road quickly, with Kagome in the passenger seat with barely controlled excitement. _I can't wait to see the band!_

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With Inuyasha's directions, they found themselves at the Taishou's household. It was a really nice house; it was three stories tall, with an average sized front yard and, from what they could see of it, a _huge_backyard (maybe a couple acres worth). Plus, there were three smaller buildings somewhere in the backyard, which Kagome presumed were Sesshoumaru's workshop and the place where the band practiced, with the purpose of the third building a mystery. They got out of the car, and she heard the hanyou chuckle as she stared up at the house with awe. "It's so big…"

"Yeah, well, so is my dad." He had already explained that his father was rarely home and to not expect to see him any time soon. He walked off towards one of the buildings, telling them, "Follow me, and I'll show you where the band is." Kagome looked at Sango, glad to see that she was eager as well, and they both quickly followed him as he approached the door. He knocked on it three times, and someone from inside asked, "Who is it?"

"It's me, lecher. Open up."

The girls gave each other nervous glances at the word 'lecher', but Inuyasha smirked as the door opened and he said, "You decided to start without me? What a shame."

"Actually, we've only just gotten here." A guy stood there with dark black hair up in a small ponytail of some sorts, wearing a dark blue tee and jeans with white sneakers. He smiled at the two ladies behind the hanyou and asked, "Who are these lovely ladies?"

"Leave them alone, pervert." He muttered under his breath so only he could hear before he introduced them. "This is Kagome," she nodded at him in greeting, "and here's Sango." Sango looked at him warily, her arms crossed with an eyebrow raised. He smiled at her and said, "My dear Sango, my name is Miroku." He bent down to kiss her hand, but then Inuyasha grabbed him by his hair and pulled him back, saying, "Don't try to marry her just yet, lecher." Sango's face was a bit red for a moment, but then she shook her head and glared at Miroku as he chuckled nervously.

"Alright, let them meet the rest of the band." Inuyasha pulled him farther from the girls as they stepped into the building. It was about the size of a basketball court, with a stage over in the far back. Two other people stood there, looking at the newcomers as they waited to start practicing. The first of them was some sort of a neko youkai with her tan-orange hair up in a short and spiky ponytail, wearing an emerald green shirt with a pair of light blue capris, watching them with guarded icy-blue eyes. Beside her, a slightly short boy (who, after a moment of Kagome staring, actually was a youkai) with short reddish-brown hair and a puffy light cream tail, his emerald orbs alight with curiosity. He wore a teal shirt with some famous brand name on it and a pair of hazel-colored pants. He was up to about four feet in height, two heads shorter than the other youkai. They both seemed inquisitive at the two new faces, and were answered by Inuyasha before they could even ask, "These two are friends from school. Kagome, Sango, meet Sakura and Shippou."

"Hi!" Kagome smiled and waved at them as the boy grinned back. "I'm Kagome."

"Nice to meet you; I'm Shippou, and this is Sakura-mama." He pointed up at her as she nodded, a smirk on her face. She asked them, "So they're the reason you never came to our lunch table?"

Inuyasha scratched the back of his neck nervously and started, "Well, I –"

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Kagome apologized immediately. "I didn't know you were expecting him! I won't do it again."

Sakura laughed and waved away her apology as she said, "That's okay; it's better than hearing his grumbling and complaining." She smirked as he glared at her and gave her 'the finger'. She returned it with a snicker and turned back to the others. "So, are we going to start practicing, or are we going to goggle at the pretty ladies?" As the two girls turned their flushed faces away, Shippou agreed, "Yeah, let's get started!"

Inuyasha gladly picked up his guitar, which strangely looked like a sword, and said, "Alright! Let's do it!"

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Kagome was glad she got to see them practice as she whispered to Sango about how awesome it was. She agreed, and they clapped vigorously when the last note ended. The inu hanyou smirked and said smugly, "I knew you two would like that! So predictable, girls…" He hissed an 'ouch!' when Sakura punched him in the shoulder, and as the other girls giggled at him he yelled, "What was _that _for, wench?"

"Just because you_think _you know girls doesn't mean you _do!_" She crossed her arms and huffed, "We're a lot more complicated than you airheads, anyways."

"How am _I _an airhead? _You're _the one who always seems to be so stuck-up about how she looks!"

Sakura smirked and ran her fingers through her hair as she taunted him, "Well, it's not_my _fault I was born beautiful! And don't you forget it!"

"Why would I care what _you _look like, anyways? You're just a –"

"I should have known it would be _you _making such a horrible racket."

Everyone immediately turned around to look at Sesshoumaru standing in the doorway, eyeing his brother coldly. He seemed rather irked that his business was interrupted with their 'practice', although he questioned if they ever really got anything done. They fought too much, to say the least.

"I don't need _you_to start chewing me out, Sesshoumaru!" Inuyasha growled at him, immediately getting defensive. His brother, however, just replied coolly, "Aren't _you_ getting along with your friends." He ignored the deep growl from the hanyou's throat as he continued, "And in the presence of two guests. Honestly, your behavior is nothing less of atrocious." He smirked as his brother gripped his guitar tighter, ready to fling him away effortlessly in case he tried to try to hit him.

"Umm, I don't mind."

Both brothers, as well as the rest of the band, looked at Kagome in surprise as she blushed with all of them staring at her. She smiled nervously at Inuyasha as she continued, "I don't mind it; I find it rather cute." Giggling at the blush that faintly tinted his face, she looked at Sesshoumaru and bowed her head slightly. "I'm sorry if we interrupted anything."

The youkai looked at her quietly, his shock hidden from the others while they wondered what he would say. He glanced at his brother as he stared at him silently, his desire for a fight softened only by his new friend's voice. _Hmm…_ he looked back at the human who smiled at him warmly. _If that isn't strange, I don't know what is. _

"I'll let it slide once, but not again. Good-bye, hanyou." He closed the door, ignoring his brother's colorful curses that he mumbled under his breath. _That girl…_ he glanced into the window as he saw Kagome staring at the door where he was a moment ago. _What is it that makes her so cheerful?_

Inside of the building, Sango looked at her friend in surprise. "Wow…" she mumbled thoughtfully. "I've never seen Inuyasha's brother so calm after a human speaking to him."

"Eh, he knows that if he messes with her, he's messing with me!" Inuyasha growled as he turned around and picked up his guitar again. He slightly strummed the strings, grinning at the sound it made, before looking at the girls. "Kagome?"

She looked up at him, the slight curiosity on her face showing as she responded, "Yes?"

"How would you like to come here after school to watch us practice?" He balanced his guitar on his shoulder and smirked, "You and Sango could be our audience, and Kagome's unnatural friendly smiles could be our Fluffy-repellant! What do you say?"

Kagome stood up and nodded, smiling at him sincerely. "Of course! I'd love to!" She looked at Sango and nodded as her friend agreed. "It'd be a great way to spend our homework-time!"

"Perfect!" Shippou jumped happily. "You could help me get my confidence going!"

"And you could also make suggestions for our songs." Miroku added casually as he gave one of his charming smiles to the ladies.

Sakura nodded and flipped her ponytail with a smirk. "You might even try to sing a few songs with us!"

"Really?" The two girls' eyes sparkled at the thought, and Inuyasha glared at Sakura for saying something like that. She knew he didn't want another girl in his band, since she was a handful as it was. What the hell was she –

"Thanks, Inuyasha-san!" Both girls quickly hugged him, catching him off guard as his eyes widened in shock. He nearly dropped his guitar, and was glad, and maybe a little disappointed, when they both let go and let him take a breath. The two giggled a little at his expression, before a ringing sound alerted Kagome as she quickly pulled out her cell phone. She answered it with a 'hello?' which quickly changed to a smile as she said, "Hi, Mom!"

Inuyasha glared at the neko youkai behind Kagome's back as the black-haired girl replied, "No, I'm not dead! I just came over to a friend's house! …Yes, he is rather nice; so is Sango and Shippou and – what do you mean 'it's a guy'? Geez, Mom, what were you…?"

"You'll thank me later." Sakura smirked and turned to tap her drumsticks lightly against the wall as the hanyou tried to ask what she meant by that, but was interrupted when Shippou elbowed him with a 'shh!' as Kagome finished her conversation. "Alright, Mom, I'll be there in fifteen minutes…love you too…bye."

"What was that for?" Inuyasha glared at the little runt as Kagome pocketed her cell phone. Shippou 'hmphed' and said, "You shouldn't talk when someone's on the phone! It's rude!"

"You don't tell me what to do, furball!" Inuyasha went to grab him by his tail, but Sakura immediately stood in front of him and spat, "Leave him alone, _mutt!_"

"Why should I, _cat?_"

"Because I said so! And I'm a _cougar youkai_, not a _cat!_"

Kagome bent and whispered to Miroku, "Why is she so protective of Shippou?"

He looked on as the two fought (again) and explained, "She's Shippou's adopted 'parent'. His real parents died a little while after he was born, and so she's the one taking care of him. And she's rather serious about it, too."

"I see…" She nodded thoughtfully as she watched the fight steadily get louder, but suddenly leapt up with an 'eep!' when she felt something touch her backside.

_Slap!_

Miroku rubbed the red handprint on his face as Kagome stomped away angrily. _The nerve of him! _She huffed as she grabbed Sango. "Let's go before it gets too dark." Her friend nodded as she glared at the lecher, who chuckled nervously as they exited the building. His attention was turned towards the angry tempers that grew, however, as they both raised up their instruments. "Stop it, you two! We don't need to go buy _another _drum set."

They glared at him, and then grumbled darkly as they turned away from each other. Miroku sighed and thought, _they fight like a married couple. _He laughed at the thought, earning confused glances from them, before he picked his bass guitar back up. "Let's do that other song, shall we? Then we'll call it a day."

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Kagome sighed as she laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling in her pink pants and white pajama top. Again, she was having trouble sleeping as she thought of the days events. Getting new friends was the best thing, as well as seeing a band play right in front of her. She wondered, though, what Sesshoumaru did in his workshop that they seemed to distract him so badly he came to stop them himself. _Was he __**always **__like this?_ She frowned, imagining his cold, yet handsome, face on the ceiling. _That's hard to believe. What could have made him like that, I wonder?_

She sighed and turned on her side, staring at the table with her computer on it, humming quietly as its screen showed the blossoms falling that were her screensaver. She had chatted with her friends as soon as she came home, telling them everything about her first day at her new school. One of them, Ayumi, had typed, 'If Sesshoumaru is such a hunk, why don't you go out with him?'

Kagome had paused after reading that, thinking about the question as her mind wandered to the class she had first seen him in. After a moment, Sango's words came back to her. "_He's completely youkai, and he likes to think of Inuyasha as beneath him and humans along with him_." She sighed and replied, 'He doesn't seem to like me, and besides, he's too sharp-tongued for my tastes. As for the hunk comment –' She paused typing for a moment, before grinning and continuing, 'I have to agree with you, he is _hot!_'

_Commentaries_

DL: Well, not too bad, eh? Especially for a first try, too! A bit short, but…yeah. This is the first Inuyasha story I've really considered on _finishing_. I'm so glad I started, cuz now I don't wanna stop! Let's see where this takes us, shall we?

Sesshoumaru: Oh, joy. Can't wait.

Inuyasha: Sesshou, being _sarcastic? _What is this world coming to?

DL: (ignoring them both) Also, all thanks to the author Striking Falcon, who gave me such inspiration to type something like this! Hopefully I can at least compare to her wonderful works, and I REALLY hope she doesn't mind we borrowing the idea of the band thing. I just needed something to get Inuyasha to invite her over, and let it begin…

Kagome: Let what begin?

DL: (laughs maniacally) You'll see!

Shadowpaw: I don't like how she said that…

Inuyasha: For once, I'll agree with the cat…


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **Inuyasha does _not _belong to me. If it did, would I be here right now, or would I be in Oahu, Hawaii enjoying my (_rich_)vacation?

_The man who listens is the one who understands. _**– A Jabo (Liberia) Proverb**

"Let's go, Sango!" Kagome pulled her excitedly as she ran to the lunchroom. "We promised to meet Inuyasha there, remember?"

"I know!" Sango groaned and tried to get out of her death grip, with no luck. "But my arm is about to fall off!"

It had been a few days after Kagome and Sango first visited Inuyasha's house, and it was not the last time, either. They continued to go, with the permission of their parents of course, and liked to listen to them jam to their songs and encourage them with their applause. The only times that it was less then cheerful was when Sakura would get Inuyasha angry again, which would be at least once each day, and if Kagome didn't get them to stop quickly it would, of course, draw in the inu youkai.

The only reason there were never any real fights was because Kagome was always there to calm Inuyasha down. She would apologize to Sesshoumaru each time, and he would leave even more puzzled by her behavior. Once, when he closed the door behind him after he left, Miroku couldn't help but chuckle. "He does seem a bit perturbed by Kagome, doesn't he?"

Her head rose when she heard her name, and she frowned at him and said, "What do you mean?"

Miroku gave her one of his charming smiles and said, "It seems he doesn't like to be near our wonderful little bucket of sunshine!"

"He'd probably burn if he got too close, that vampire…" Sakura rolled her eyes and picked up her drumsticks, grumbling, "Are we going to continue, or should we watch the grass grow?"

"You were the one who stopped us in the first place!"

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It was only with Kagome's help that they really got anything done, and they immediately welcomed her as part of the gang. They even invited them to sit at their table, which was why Kagome was so excited in the first place. She almost floated through the lunch line and dragged Sango to the table, sitting down beside Sakura as Sango reluctantly took a seat beside Miroku. He smiled at her, but she quickly grabbed his advancing hand and twisted it to the point where he winced in pain, and she let go with a smirk of satisfaction as he rubbed his wrist gently.

"I like your shirt today, Sakura!"

Sakura was wearing a nice sky blue baby doll shirt with stars surrounding a microphone, with the black cursive letters 'I'm in the band' above it. The cougar youkai smiled at Kagome and said, "I like that necklace of yours! Where'd you get it?"

"My best friends got it for me a long time ago." She smiled as she picked it up so everyone could see it clearly. It was a string of jewels colored a faint pink, with the middle pendant the largest and the gems getting smaller on both sides as it trailed around her neck. "It was for my tenth birthday, and I was so thrilled when I saw it I cried." She put it back down, feeling a little sad as she missed talking to her old friends. "I've had it ever since…"

Seeing the sad look on her face, Sakura quickly told her, "Well, I think I know what you and I should do!" She grinned at her as Kagome looked up and tilted her head with a questioning look on her face. "We'll go clothes shopping! I'll take you to the mall, and we'll have the time of our lives!"

"That's sounds great!" Kagome smiled, knowing the youkai was trying to cheer her up. She half-listened as Sakura kept going on about what would look good on her, knowing that her other friends would be glad that she had found such nice people. She wondered if they were jealous they weren't able to spend as much time with her as they used to, but it quickly left her mind as the others laughed at some joke she missed. She couldn't help but smile, enjoying the pleasure on their faces as she thought, _they're fine. After all, they've got each other._

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Inuyasha growled to the two youkai beside him, "What's taking them so long?" He had walked home that afternoon because Kagome had gone home with Sango to do something really quick. Sakura smirked at him and taunted, "What, are you missing them?" He glared at her, and the little kitsune between them said, "Don't worry, she'll be here soon!"

"They're here already." Miroku observed as he looked out of the window. He smiled secretly, and he turned to Inuyasha to see him look at the door expectantly. "Don't stare, Inuyasha."

'What?' was the only thing the hanyou could say before the door opened, and all attention was drawn to Kagome as she stepped into the room. She blushed as Inuyasha's mouth hung open slightly, his eyes looking her up and down in surprise. "Whoa…"

She twirled around with her black skirt that was a bit too short for her liking, although Sakura approved it the instant she tried it on. She wore a red shirt that showed a little cleavage with a slit at the end of her long sleeves that made her look as if she was ready to tango. She blushed and looked down as Miroku spoke up, "Told you."

"Shut up…" Inuyasha took a moment more to look at her, before he quickly turned around and picked up his guitar, not quite seeing the smirks on the two youkai (is that the plural use for the word, like deer and deer?) behind him. "Come on, we don't have all day! We need to get to work!"

"What work?"

Again, everyone turned (Inuyasha with a glare) to see Sesshoumaru looking around at their faces. His gaze stopped at Kagome, and he blinked as he stood there, staring at her strange attire. She was quiet for a moment, the blush from earlier still on her face, before she cleared her throat and said, "Inuyasha-chan said they're going to play a 'gig' tomorrow afternoon." She smiled at the band and admitted, "I can't wait to see them play!"

"W-well, what's the difference?" Inuyasha immediately scratched the back of his head, feeling a bit anxious at her smiling at him so nicely. _Maybe this is how Sesshoumaru feels…_ "You've watched us play everyday now."

"Yes, but not in front of a crowd!" She giggled and twirled around, ignoring the way most of the males watched her skirt fly up slightly (except Shippou, who looked away with blush staining his face) and saying, "It's_totally _different than just being out in this shed all day!"

"It's not a shed…" The hanyou muttered, but he tilted his head after she laughed and said, "What? What's so funny?"

"Nothing!" She put a finger to her lip, as if thinking about something, before she looked at Sesshoumaru and asked, "Aren't you going to the concert?"

The youkai stood straight as he replied coldly, "I only go because I am forced to. If I had a choice, I would rather listen to sirens wail in my ears." He turned to leave, but was stopped as Shippou spoke up and said, "You're always so mean! Why do you have to be so cold-hearted to your own brother?"

Sesshoumaru only gave the kitsune a glance before turning away and continuing off to his workshop, leaving the door open to let a small draft come in as he left the room silent. Kagome frowned, quickly running over to shut the door, but stopped when she heard Inuyasha mutter, "He doesn't consider me as family, that's why…"

She looked at his head bowed down trying to hide the hatred in his eyes, and she could only wonder why he would say such a thing. _He doesn't __**really**__think that…_ She glanced at Sesshoumaru entering the other building. _Could he?_

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'Did he really say_that?_' Her friend, Eri, asked her while she chatted online. Yuka also commented, 'He couldn't have really been _that _cold, could he?'

'Yes, he was. And it didn't seem like he was joking…' She looked out of the window thoughtfully, the slight breeze that came in playing with her hair._He didn't want anything to do with his brother, _she contemplated, _except to irritate him. Even me and Souta get along better…_

_Bang!_

Kagome glared at the door, hearing the ball that bounced off of it continue its way down the hall, with her brother scampering after it. _Although not by much. _'I'd rather be stuck with those two than with my brother, though.'

'Are you sure it isn't because they're cute?'

She scowled at Ayumi's assumptions and responded, 'no, I'm being serious! Although they're like two lions in a cage, they're less annoying than Souta!'

_Bang!_

She stood up and opened the door to yell at Souta only to receive a ball flung in the face. She glowered at her brother as he muttered 'oops' and ran off before she unleashed her wrath, the ball quickly forgotten. She glared at where he ran off, then just sighed and closed the door as she sat back down and typed, 'I'd rather be with them when they're actually fighting.'

'And I guess them being super hot is just an added bonus, right?'

Kagome sighed. _She never learns, does she?_ 'Sure, whatever you say, Eri.' She glanced at the clock, then told them, 'Alright, I have to go. Chat with you tomorrow?'

'Of course!' All three of them responded, earning a smile from her as she shut down her computer. She stretched and yawned loudly, wondering how she had been able to stay up this long as she got into her pajamas. She slipped into her bed, but she didn't go to sleep immediately. Instead, she looked up at the ceiling again, her thoughts flying through her head as she begged for her mind to let her sleep. She was just thinking of how Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru had been staring at her in the outfit Sakura picked out when her eyes closed drowsily. The last thought she had before succumbing to weariness was, _I should let her do that more often…_

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Kagome couldn't help but smile as she watched Inuyasha from backstage. His band was earning cheers from all over the place, and she was secretly glad that she could watch as they continued to play their song proudly. As they went on through their performance, however, she could not help but let her gaze wander over to a certain inu youkai that stood indifferently as he stared off into the distance. She wondered what he was thinking about, and why he wasn't at least sneering at his brother in concert. He hadn't laid his eyes on anyone since they got here, simply ignoring everyone until he was left alone.

Sango tugged her sleeve and asked, "Are you alright, Kagome?" She couldn't see what she was looking at, and so Kagome quickly looked at her and nodded. "I'm fine! Aren't they great?"

"Yeah…" Sango's gaze wandered as well, and Kagome had a feeling she knew what she was looking at. _Or who, to be precise! _She slightly pushed her and said, "You should stop staring at him and ask him out or something!"

Sango immediately looked at her with a scowl and argued, "I'm not staring at _him!_ He's groped at my backside _enough_ to make me want to throw a chair at him right now!"

Her friend laughed at her anger and said, "He's only flirting, you know. He just doesn't have the…gentle touch he should."

"Tell me about it…" Sango grumbled, and she looked at Kagome in confusion when she giggled at her. "What's so funny?" But she just shook her head, and she could only wonder as Kagome continued to smile as she stared into the distance, remembering each time Miroku had groped the girls and how many slaps he earned. Now it wasn't so annoying to Kagome because she knew it was all in good fun, but Sango didn't seem to think so. She would glare at the lecher as her friend giggled at the two handprints on his face. Even when he wasn't groping _her_, Sango would slap him. Her excuse would always be to scoff and say 'serves him right, pervert!' and she would try to change the subject. She just didn't know how amusing Kagome thought she was.

As Sango huffed angrily and continued to watch the band, Kagome looked over at Sesshoumaru again. She was surprised to find him staring at her, and she quickly looked away with some blush on her face (and not the make-up kind of blush). _Why is he looking at me? _She twiddled her thumbs, wondering if she should look up to see if he was still watching her. Sango realized her nervousness and looked at her. "Kagome? What's wrong?"

"…Oh, umm, nothing. I'm fine." She smiled timidly at her friend, and Sango frowned at her, not buying it one bit. But she let her go this time, and went back to watching the show as Kagome sighed in relief. After a moment of thought, she looked up at the youkai again to be thankful to find him looking away from her, although he now had a small smirk on his face. She tilted her head, wondering where that had come from. _What's he find so funny?_ She thought that maybe she should ask him after the concert, but she mentally shook her head and watched Inuyasha as he nodded his head to the song. _I doubt he'd answer me, anyways._

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Inuyasha put his guitar against the wall, careful not to let it tip over. He made sure it wouldn't fall, watching it for a moment, before he sighed and mumbled, "Today sure was eventful…"

"Oh, yes it was."

The hanyou whirled around in alarm as Sesshoumaru looked around the room, ignoring the glare he received from Inuyasha. He spat, "What do you want _now?_"

"I don't want anything." Sesshoumaru said coolly as his gaze swept over the instruments that adorned the room. The band's instruments were all in the corner near Inuyasha's, although there were several others in the room as well. Everything from trumpets to tambourines was there, and he had to step over a saxophone left on the floor. The youkai then looked at his half-brother and commented, "It seems those humans are quite attached to you."

"Leave them alone, Sesshoumaru." Inuyasha growled, ready to spring at the first sign of a fight. Sesshoumaru, however, remained calm as he watched his temper grow. He continued, "Especially that new one, whatever her name was…Kagome. She's stuck to you like glue." He smirked at the slight blush on Inuyasha's face after he said that as he retorted, "Her and Sango are just friends! They come because they want to watch us play and help us!"

"Yes, I'm sure of that." Sesshoumaru said thoughtfully, and he looked at the hanyou for a moment, watching his eyes burn with his anger for a while. He commented, "She's always smiling at you, too. Don't you wonder what makes her so cheery?"

"I said _leave them alone!_" Inuyasha charged towards him, his arm ready to beat the living hell out of him, but Sesshoumaru just grabbed his arm and casually flung him across the room. He hit the wall hard, knocking the wind out of him, and fell two feet away from his guitar. He held his head, glaring at the youkai as he turned away and walked out of the building. He slowly got back up and dusted himself off, grumbling, "That bastard's gonna pay one day…"

Sesshoumaru walked into the house thinking quietly as he silently ascended the stairs to his room. _He gets so upset when I talk about her… _He smirked, wondering just what Inuyasha found in those humans. _I'll have to watch them carefully myself._

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Sango looked up from the horse she was tending to as Kagome walked into the stables, a strange smell emanating from the door. Kagome was wearing a light blue jacket with gold threads tracing a flower pattern on the bottom right corner over a white shirt with a little blushing blue bunny on it, with some jeans and black sandals. She had on her pink jewel necklace as well as a ring with a turquoise gemstone on it. She seemed to be bouncy and bubbly as she skipped in like a happy little girl on her birthday.

She smiled at her and said, "Glad you could come, Kagome!"

The raven-haired girl nodded, her eyes twinkling as she looked at the horses all around her. "You ride all of them?" She asked, astounded. She reached over to pet the coal-colored horse with white socks on its legs, smiling as its ear twitched and it gave her a small snort.

"Yeah!" Sango reached over and pulled the saddle onto the horse's back. After tying it firmly underneath, she got up using the stirrup and swung her leg over its side. She patted the horse on its neck and said, "This one here is Oreo. He likes to gallop around the pen as fast as he can."

"Wow…" Kagome watched as her friend lightly tug on the reins to turn him to the right, and watched him begin his gallop eagerly. She liked to watch the free spirits of the horses as they ran around the fenced-in area, which was a huge field where they would let the sun's warmth on their skin warm them. She looked over at a white pony to her right and patted it gently. She held up a carrot she had picked up on her way out and smiled as it nibbled it a little before nosing her stomach as if it could smell something. She laughed and held up her other hand with a few sugar cubes and teased, "You can't be fooled, can you?" She gave it to the beautiful white horse and rubbed its neck as it licked it off of her hand, neighing happily.

Sango came back around on Oreo and said, "I think Milk likes you. She's actually a mother of one of the foals here. Her name is Honey."

Kagome nodded, and gave Milk a nice pat on the nose before turning to her friend and asking her, "So, are you ready to go?"

Sango smiled as she got off and said, "You're so eager to go! Alright," she lead the horse into the stables, and turned to her brother Kohaku and said, "Make sure you clean his stall, alright? I'll do the others when I get home." He nodded with a sigh and looked over the gate, scrunching his nose as he took a small sniff. Kagome giggled as he gagged and covered his mouth, but her sister rolled her eyes and said, "Come on, grow up! You're in middle school, so you shouldn't act like a baby anymore!" As soon as she turned away, though, he made faces behind her back. Kagome covered her mouth as she smiled, and Sango gave her a puzzled look. Then, after a moment, she sniffed and said, "Kagome-chan? Are you wearing perfume or something?"

Kagome looked down with a small blush, her hands behind her back like a little girl caught while doing something bad. "Yeah, I just put a little on to spruce things up a little."

"It smells like that 'kiss me' stuff from the mall I sampled before…" She stared at her for a moment longer, thinking, before shaking her head with a sigh and saying, "Come on! I want you to meet someone."

Filled with curiosity, she ran after her to the front door as Sango stuck her head in. She called out, "Come here, Kirara!" As they waited, Kagome saw a small white furred cat walk over to the door. She had two tails flicking beside her, which made her gasp, and she looked up with small, cute red eyes. She had pretty little black markings on her, with a small mane of fur and little black paws. Kagome kneeled down and carefully stuck her hand out for the feline to sniff, before smiling as Kirara rubbed it as she purred like a steady motor.

"This is Kagome, Kirara. She's my friend from school." Kirara looked up and mewed, and Sango looked at Kagome and explained, "I found her a long time ago one day as I rode Oreo, when I was just a small girl and he was a little pony. She was hurt, and I brought her back to the house to see if we could help her. She's stayed here ever since." She picked up the cat and smiled. "She's a special little kitty, aren't you?"

"Meow!"

Kagome smiled and nodded. "Yep! They say that a cat with two tails has some type of magical power."

"Yeah, Kirara does." She walked into the front yard and put the feline down. When she looked up at the human, Sango nodded, and Kirara mewed before a_pop_ping sound rang out as smoke surrounded her. When it cleared, a giant feline stood before them, with strong legs standing firmly as it yowled proudly at the two girls. Kagome's eyes were like stars as she ran over and pet her fur, giggling as she said, "She's so soft!" She scratched behind the cat's ears adoringly. "She really is a special cat."

"Come on!" Sango jumped onto the new Kirara, and she helped Kagome up with a smile. "She's faster than any of the horses, so I would suggest holding on tight." She did as she said, and the tomboy horse rider gripped the cat's mane as she said, "Let's go, Kirara!"

Kirara gave a roar that could frighten a lion and leapt down the road, ignoring her riders' yelling as they smiled and waved at the stunned people they passed on the sidewalk. Kagome couldn't help but wish that they could do this everyday instead of the boring ride in Sango's car.

Of course, who could blame her?

She felt as if she was flying as Kirara leapt towards the house. Her bounds launched her high into the sky, and she seemed to glide to the ground where she would run a short distance before pumping her legs and flying back into the blue. Kagome secretly wished Kirara could really fly so she could touch the clouds, but her wish went unanswered as they finally alighted at the front yard of the house. After they got off, Kirara became the small cat in a puff of smoke, and mewed as Sango picked her up and followed Kagome to the back of the house.

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Kagome could already smell the food as they came to the building where the band practiced, so she knew that it must be torturing the hanyou. She giggled at the thought and ran to the door, but before she could knock it opened quickly and she was suddenly hugged by Shippou. The kitsune laughed and said, "Kagome! I'm so glad you came! I thought you wouldn't for a while, but –"

"Let her breathe, Shipppou-chan!" Sakura picked Shippou up by the back of his shirt, and he struggled to get out of her grip as he whined, "Let go of me, Sakura! Put me down! Let go!" As he continued to complain, Inuyasha walked over with a grin and said, "You came just in time! I was itching to start eating, but that _cat_," He pointed a claw at Sakura as he rolled his eyes, "said I had to wait until _you_girls came. _But_ – now that you're here –" He quickly rushed towards the tables in the middle of the room and started to pile things onto his plate.

Kagome giggled when Miroku whacked his hands with a spatula before he could grab a steak and told him, "Don't you know the saying 'ladies first'?"

"No!" The hanyou grumbled as he rubbed his hands tenderly, giving the bass player a glare. Miroku just smiled, though, as the two girls walked over and looked at all of the food on the two tables put out on the floor. "You like it?"

"It all looks so good…" Kagome whispered, eyeing the cake and other deserts as Sango watched him pull up another plate of steaks onto the table, her eyes wide with amazement. Miroku laughed at the looks on their faces as he waved a hand at all of the food. "Dig in! I cooked the food for eating, not for show."

"You cooked _all _of this?" Kagome asked, astounded at the thought. Obviously Sango was too, because she asked, "You _cook?_"

He laughed again and explained, "I had some help from my mother, but I brought it all here and helped set up the tables. Inuyasha's always saying I'm lazy, so I like to prove him wrong."

Kagome smiled and picked up a plate, and she had some trouble picking what to eat first. "It all looks so delicious…" She said quietly to herself as she finally got some salmon, smiling as Sakura came over with her plate and picked up the other three left on the plate. Inuyasha scowled at the youkai, but she just stuck her tongue out at him and winked at Kagome before she walked over to a chair by the stage and sat down. Soon, the two girls joined her, and they looked over at the microphones set up on the stage. Sango asked, "Why is everything set up?"

"Well…" Sakura looked at her slyly as picked up the fish with her hands and took a bite out of it. "Me and the others decided that we wanted to hear Kagome sing!"

"_What?!_" Both of the girls shouted, making the youkai and hanyou in the area flinch. Kagome smiled apologetically, but she looked at Sakura questioningly. "Why, though?"

"We've never heard you sing before!" Sakura finished of the fish quickly and wiped her hands on a napkin. She licked her lips to get the rest of the fish taste there and continued, "Besides, we _always _do a 'karaoke night' here, where we each sing our favorite song without any instruments. We usually bring a CD so we could still have the music playing but otherwise it's lots of fun!" She gave Kagome a little kitty-pout. "Pwease? Shippou's been _dying _to hear you sing!"

Shippou was just sitting down beside them, but he blushed and whined, "_Sakura!_ I didn't say that!"

"Come on, Kagome!" The cougar youkai ignored her ward's protest and smiled sweetly. "I bet you have a voice _almost_ as _lovely _as mine!"

Kagome blushed, but she shook her head and said, "No, I…I really shouldn't…"

"Aww, come on! Please?"

"…Err…"

"I'll give you some of my _special _fish sticks!"

"Blegh!" Inuyasha sat down in a chair beside them with a disgusted look on his face. "That's one thing I will _not _touch."

"_Shut up!_ Please?" Kagome looked up at her reluctantly, wincing at Sakura's pout, and sighed. "Will you leave me alone afterwards?"

"_Yes!_ Come on, let's go!" She jerked Kagome up and ran towards the stage, dragging the poor girl behind her. She put her on the front of the stage, positioned the microphone for her, and then ran back down and sat down, a triumphant look on her face. Kagome blushed as the band and Sango looked up at her expectantly and whispered into the microphone, "But I-I didn't bring a CD…"

"That's alright!" Miroku smiled at her, making her blush even more. "Just sing whatever you want. It's not too hard."

"Umm…okay…" She cleared her throat nervously. "I guess I'll try…"

"That's the spirit!" Sakura smiled and clapped. "Come on, Kagome! Show us what you're made of!"

The blush still staining her face, she cleared her throat again, thinking of what song she should sing. She thought about doing one of the band's songs, but she didn't really want to since there were parts where a boy was supposed to sing, and it didn't seem right anyways. She didn't feel like doing any of the songs she knew, either…

"Having trouble picking?" Sango looked at her curiously. When Kagome nodded, she said, "What about your favorite song?"

"Well…" Kagome thought about it for a while. _Well…_ She mumbled, "There is one song…"

"Try singing that!"

"Okay…" She cleared her throat again, her mind set on the first couple of notes, and she inhaled the air filled with the smell of food. She was extremely nervous, since the only times she really ever sang were when she was taking a shower. She wasn't so confident about singing in public. _But…_ she looked around at them all smiling encouragingly at her and clapping as they waited for her to start._They're all my friends! I should at least try._ So, she took a deep breath…

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Sesshoumaru was following the smell of grilled steak and salmon, wondering why it was coming from the 'shed' that his idiot brother's band practiced in. He walked over to the window to glance in, seeing two tables filled with a variety of food, as if they were having a banquet of some kind. _What is that hanyou doing?_ He looked at all of their faces to see them staring at something on the stage. They were all smiling and giving thumbs-up to…

_What is __**she**__doing up there?_ He wondered as he looked at Kagome's nervous expression. She was up at the mike, glancing around at everyone. He heard her mumble, "Well, there is one song…" _Is she going to sing? _He silently opened the door and leaned against the doorframe, thinking, _this will be amusing. _As one of the humans said something to her, he noticed another scent in the air coming from Kagome. As if she had put on some kind of perfume._Interesting…_

"Try singing that!" The other human, Sango, said encouragingly. The anxious girl onstage nodded with a small 'okay' and cleared her throat. The scent of nervousness and fear hung heavy in the air, and Sesshoumaru couldn't help but smirk. _She must sound like a dying cat. The scent she's giving off tells as much. _He crossed his arms, waiting for something to torture his ears as she took a deep breath…

"_My hands are on my ears…_" She began, and everyone in the room took in a surprised breath. Her voice was _beautiful _as it flew through the air, caressing their ears as she continued in a sad, hurt tone of voice, "_So I can't hear you yell._"

"Whoa…" Sesshoumaru could hear the hanyou let it out in a stunned sigh of air, and he smirked at his brother's amazement. _So she can sing,_he thought with a mental scoff. _That __**would **__be enough to surprise __**you**__, Inuyasha. _But, as she continued, he couldn't help but wonder where she got such a voice.

"_I'm curled up in my bed; I'm hurt, can't you tell?_" She seemed to sing the song from her very heart, as if she was pouring all of her sadness into this one song. "_I'd wish it all away, if only I could…But instead I hide from you. I knew I would._

"_But I don't want to cry…_" She continued, closing her eyes as she tried her hardest to sing it correctly from memory. Everyone could see how deep she was in the song, but only the two Taishou brothers could really notice the small sigh of regret. "_Don't want to shed these tears. I don't want to cry…and give away my fears. I don't want to cry…they'll think that I am weak. I don't want to cry…paradise is what I seek._"

She stopped to get a breath, opening an eye slightly to look at her audience. She was shocked to see them all looking as if they had seen an angel fall from heaven before them. As she tried not to blush she wondered if she was _really _that good. She closed her eyes again, took a deep breath, and continued with the song.

"_I'm really all grown up now…Daddy, can't you see?_" She was back into the song, as if nothing else mattered but to let her voice be heard now that she got their attention. "_And all I've ever wanted is that you'd be proud of me._" She gulped, as if trying to keep something back. "_But I guess I'm not doing it right, or trying hard enough. I'll just keep on trying, even when times are rough._

"_Because I don't want to cry…_" it was back to the chorus, "_and let my feelings free. I don't want to cry…I wish you'd be happy. I don't want to cry…I'd rather lose it all. I don't want to cry, not even when I fall._"

She took another deep breath, and it seemed the song was really getting to her. She had to gulp again, and her eyes were blinking a little more than they should. The scent of sadness was now creeping in, the fear and nervousness gone as her sorrow shone through her words.

"_Hey, Mommy, how was your day? Are the bills getting paid? Is my brother feeling good? Should I be the maid?_" She closed her eyes again, trying to keep from showing how sad she really was. It seemed that…she was going to cry.

"_I know you have to work tonight, and I'll be home alone. But…at least you'll say 'I love you, too' when I call you on the phone._

"_And I don't want to cry…I'll show you I am strong. I don't want to cry…though the nights are long._" It was almost as if she wanted to stop, but she willed herself to keep singing. "_I don't want to cry…my brother needs me tonight. I don't want to cry…one day, it'll be alright._'

She was quiet for a moment, taking a few deep breaths to try to calm herself, and even the humans in the room could tell something was wrong. She tried to hide her expression, but her eyes, although open for a short time, were filled with sadness. The youkai could now smell salt brewing up as she gulped in air and began quietly at a slower pace…

"_Mom, Dad, I love you…do you love me, too? Will you always love me, no matter what I do?_" She closed her eyes, trying really hard now to stop the tears from spilling. "_I hope you'll always be there. I hope you'll understand. I want to be better for you, to do what I can…_

"_Because I don't want to cry, I will not shed these tears. I don't want to cry…I'll fight away my fears. I don't want to cry; I know that I'm not weak. And I don't want to cry…even though it may look bleak…_" She paused, standing there in silence as everyone stared at her, wondering where this new Kagome came from. Then, she sang softly, "_Because…paradise…is what…I…seek…_"

As the last note hung in the air, shivering out in the open, the others stared at her with amazement. She bowed slightly and walked off of the stage, trying hard to not meet anyone's gaze. She was walking towards the door, mumbling something about the bathroom, when she stopped before Sesshoumaru after realizing he was standing in the doorway. She tilted her head up a little to look at his face, his glowing golden orbs getting a fleeting glance of her unshed tears, before she looked down and whispered, "I must…go to the bathroom…please."

He stared at her bowed head, his eyes swirling mysterious, before he nodded and stepped out of the way. She thanked him and quickly walked out, and Sesshoumaru watched as the girls looked at each other before Sango ran after her. The inu youkai looked out at them as she caught up to her. As he watched, thanks to his ears, he could hear every word:

"Kagome! Kagome-chan, what's wrong?"

"N-Nothing, nothing's –"

"Great Kami-sama, and I thought you couldn't _not _smile! But what was _that_about? You were all bouncy and cheery, and then suddenly you're mumbling and don't look anyone in the eye!" She stepped in front of her and grabbed her shoulders. "What is it, Kagome? What wrong?"

"Sango, it's really too hard to –"

"No, it's not!" She tried to smile at her. "You can tell me anything, right? We're friends, right?"

Kagome looked up at her. "I…I know, but…" She sighed. "It's hard to explain."

"Then at least _try_." She gave her a comforting hug. "I wanna know what happened. Why are you so sad?"

"Well…" Kagome looked down at the ground. "I…I wrote that song –"

"Really?" Sango pulled her at arm's length to look at her. "So _that's _why it didn't ring a bell."

"I made it when…when my father and mother were fighting, before they…divorced."

"Oh…" Sango grew somber at the look on her friend's face. "I see…"

"And then, after they broke up, he had a heart attack, and…" She gulped, and the smell of salt that filled Sesshoumaru's nose strengthened. "And…"

"I'm so sorry, Kagome." Sango said with a small gasp. "I…I didn't know."

"That's alright." Kagome attempted to wipe away the tears on her face. "It was a long time ago." She looked up at her and smiled sadly. "Besides, me and Mom and Souta are still a family! Even though he's still a little twerp."

"Sounds like _my_brother." Sango giggled and hugged her again. "That's the Kagome I know." She said with a smile. She had a small tear roll down her cheek as well, but she quickly wiped it off before she pulled away. She pointed towards the house and said, "Now, go wash up. It would suck to have those guys start worrying and getting all sappy on us."

Kagome nodded, laughing a small laugh at the thought as she walked to the house. Her friend watched her leave before sighing and mumbling to herself, "And you're always so happy and cheerful…I envy you, but I also pity you."

Sesshoumaru took all of it in, not flinching as Sango walked back in, but not before glancing at him suspiciously. He just continued to stare at the house as he heard his brother start to ask, "What the hell –"

"It's a long story…" Sango muttered, and they immediately knew something was up. They could smell Kagome's lingering scent, as well as the tears. She looked at all of their expectant faces and sighed. "I'll explain."

**DLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDL**

It was Sunday, the day right after the party, and Sakura had invited Kagome and Sango on a shopping trip. Shippou wanted to go, but she told him it was a 'girls only' day. No matter how much he pouted, she wouldn't budge. After they had left, the little kitsune complained, "It's not fair…"

"Of course it's not fair." Inuyasha smirked at him. Sakura had asked Miroku to babysit Shippou (and Inuyasha, if need be). "Life isn't fair."

Miroku glared at the hanyou as he added, "Besides, they're going to cheer Kagome up. Sakura wants to make up for forcing her onstage."

"But _I _wanna cheer her up, too!" He whined. "But _no_, I'm stuck being tortured with a lecher and a jerk!"

"_What was that?_"

Shippou yelped and tried to run off, but Inuyasha grabbed him by his tail. Before he could do something he would regret later, however, Miroku snatched the kitsune from him and told him, "If you keep that up, Sakura will beat you all the way to hell and back!"

"Ha! I'd like to see her _try!_"

"And you know she would…" Miroku sighed and shook his head as he put Shippou down. The kitsune scampered off before Inuyasha could get him again, and the hanyou growled, "But why _can't _we go to the mall with them? I mean, is it some kind of secret _girl _thing we're not allowed to be there for or something?"

"Actually…" Inuyasha watched as he put a hand on his chin thoughtfully, his eyes closed. "We were asked to _watch _Shippou. She said nothing of not going to the mall."

They were quiet for a moment, as Miroku continued his sweeping up the room after yesterday's mess (yes, it was _that _messy) and Inuyasha staring at him. Then, the hanyou smirked and said, "I like the way you think, Miroku. Tell me why I didn't want you to join the band again?"

"Yes, I know." He looked at him, a twinkle in his eye. "What would you do without me?"

"Sleep easier. Now, let's go, _runt_." Inuyasha snatched Shippou again, and ignored his protests as he said, "We're going to the mall."

Immediately, the kitsune stopped and asked, "Really?" He looked at Miroku expectantly, and when he nodded, the little youkai cheered and said happily, "We should get Kagome-chan something nice! Do you think she'd like a teddy bear?"

"Well, it wouldn't hurt to do a little _spying_ before we get her something, now, would it?"

"Again, Miroku, _why_did I ever dislike you?"

"Don't thank me, please. You can thank me later, after our little trip."

"Yeah! I'm going to get Kagome-chan a present!"

**DLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDL**

"Hey, Sesshoumaru!"

The inu youkai glared as his half-brother walked into the kitchen. Sesshoumaru had been reading the newspaper, amused at the way things ran in the world, until he called. He asked coldly, "What do you want, _half-breed?_"

Inuyasha bit back a sharp retort (deciding to leave pleasantries until later) before he said, "We need to borrow your car. Where's the key?"

"You think I'll just hand it to you?"

"It's for a good cause!" Shippou spoke up. "We're gonna follow Kagome to the mall and get her something –"

"Shut up, _runt!_" Inuyasha pushed him over roughly with his foot, but as the kitsune yelled out him angrily Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow and said, "'Follow Kagome'? What exactly _are _you going to do?"

"We're going to the mall, now _give me the keys_." Inuyasha's patience was running short with his brother as it always did. He glared at him as the inu youkai looked back calmly, although a war was going on silently between the two. The other two looked at them nervously before Miroku stood between them and said politely, "May we borrow your car? It really is urgent."

"I'm sure it is, lecher." He ignored Shippou's giggles as he looked back at his angry brother. "But I shall drive."

"Even _Sesshoumaru_calls you that!" Shippou laughed and rolled around on the ground as the inu youkai got up from his chair. Inuyasha grumbled as he followed his brother, and the kitsune (still giggling) and insulted human followed them into the garage. Miroku nodded at the black limo parked there and said, "Nice limo."

"I _only _drive the best." He got into the front, and Miroku got in beside him to avoid any fights as he drove. The other two got in, and Miroku immediately reminded them, "Seat belts."

"Aww, Miroku!" Shippou whined as he grabbed the belt and put it into the buckle. "I'm not a little kid anymore!"

"Yeah, but you're still little!"

"Inuyasha!"

"Stop fighting, you two."

"He started it!"

"No, I didn't!"

Fed up with it, Sesshoumaru glowered at the two in the back as his voice cut through them like a cold knife, "But _I'm finishing it._" The two immediately stopped talking as they saw his chilly glare and both shivered unintentionally. Satisfied, the inu youkai grabbed the wheel and turned the keys in the ignition. He pulled out of the garage with Inuyasha fuming in the back, and Miroku shaking his head. Shippou mumbled to himself as he watched the scenery through the window speed past, "I hope we can get her something cool…"

**DLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDL**

Miroku pushed aside the fake plants branches as his eyes swept the store. He pointed towards the back and whispered, "They're over there."

"Figures we'd find them here…" Inuyasha mumbled, looking around at the clothes store. It had all the 'hippest' and 'latest' trends as well as other things, so of _course_ this would be one of their stops. No one could escape Sakura's grip.

Sesshoumaru had decided to accompany them because he said he had to make sure they 'stayed out of trouble', which almost ended in a fight if Miroku hadn't threatened Inuyasha he would warn Kagome they were there. Shippou was hiding behind the inu youkai, since he was so big, and he whispered, "Can we get closer?"

Miroku nodded, and all four of them moved silently to the back. They could see Sakura grabbing clothes and handing them to an already-hands-full Kagome. They couldn't even see her head from behind all of the clothes. Sango had a few things as well, but it was obvious Kagome was the main focus of the shopping spree. The girl said meekly, "You really shouldn't do this –"

"Of course we should!" Sakura picked up a jacket, held it up to the light for a moment, before throwing it onto Kagome's head and pushing her into the changing rooms while telling her, "Try on the things you like."

Kagome said something muffled, and Sakura replied, "Just put together something you think would look good! Come on! Let's see the diva in you!"

It was pretty quiet for a while, with shuffling and cursing in the room and Sakura smiling at her work, before the door opened slowly. Kagome stepped out wearing a silky white tight-fitting formal dress with long white gloves and a pair of pearl earrings. Her pink necklace was replaced with a necklace of small pearls, and she wore elegant white shoes.

"This is the 'formal' outfit." Sakura looked at it for a while, hand on her chin with two of her fingers in the shape of a 'v' as she looked her up and down, before saying, "That would be _great _for a prom, but it does make you seem a little pale. Otherwise, nice!" She snapped her fingers. "Next!"

Kagome returned to the dressing room, and they waited a while more. Shippou played with a leaf of his, boredom quickly taking over curiosity as everyone watched the door expectantly. Again, she returned in another outfit; this time a white tank top with a heart that had angel wings on it and a golden halo over it as well as the word 'Angel' in cursive, and a pair of capris with a hole on one of the legs. She wore blue and black sneakers as a finishing touch.

"This, ladies and gentleman, is the 'street' look." Sakura nodded as she walked around her, smiling as Kagome gave a small 'eep' when she patted her on the rear. "It let's you walk around in comfort and _still_ look as sexy as ever." She pointed to the shirt and said, "This_clearly_ states 'I'm yours if you can catch me', and boys love it when you play hard to get!" She smiled at the blushing 'role model' and snapped her fingers again. "Next!"

She returned to the dressing room, and Sango commented, "You seem to be having fun using her as a showcase of fashion."

Sakura gave her a smirk and replied, "What, I can't have _my _fun?_ Besides_, she loves it, too! Who else doesn't like to play dress-up?"

They quieted down as Kagome came out with another outfit. She had on a dark chocolate brown jacket that was buttoned up so a little cleavage showed as well as the white shirt underneath. Her jeans were black with a small 'K' on the side in silver beads. They had been, surprisingly, her size. But, of course, Sakura just seemed to be lucky with clothes.

Kagome wiggled her socked feet and mumbled, "I couldn't find any shoes to fit with it…"

"That's alright, dear!" Sakura smiled. "I've got a pair of shoes at home that'll fit."

"She never calls_anyone _dear…" Inuyasha grumbled as the youkai kept examining her, and Miroku couldn't help but grin at him. "What's wrong, Inuyasha? Feeling jealous?" Inuyasha scowled and whispered 'shut up' as they turned back to Kagome. Sesshoumaru couldn't help but smirk at the hanyou's response, making a note to taunt him about that later as he watched the cougar youkai give approval.

"Marvelous! You seem to have _excellent _taste!" Sakura nodded at the jacket and said, "It's classy and yet attractive, giving them enough to want more! And those jeans are perfect accents to it! _Magnificent!_" She hugged her and gave her pretend kisses on both cheeks. Kagome couldn't help but laugh, and the cougar youkai smiled at her and said, "Go ahead and change back into your clothes, and we'll go cruising to the ice cream, 'kay?"

"Alright!" She ran back in, and Sakura sighed and looked at Sango. "What did I tell you?"

Sango rolled her eyes and whispered, "It doesn't help that she's always _trying _to be happy…"

"Whatever. You're just in denial."

"Sure, whatever you say."

The guys quickly moved out of the store before Kagome came out, and the other three watched in hiding while Sesshoumaru looked on indifferently as the three girls walked out and towards the food court. Shippou bounced up and down and asked, "_Now_ can we get her something?"

"Alright, already, runt! Geez…" Inuyasha looked around and mumbled, "What should we get her, anyways?"

"Hmm…"

"I didn't ask you, Miroku; it was a rhetorical question."

"I didn't say anything."

"And I wasn't going to let you, either."

"Fine."

"Hey!" Shippou pointed at Kagome and asked, "Why'd she stop?"

"I don't know…" Inuyasha watched as she stared at something in the window of the games store. Sakura and Sango turned back to look at her for a moment before they called, "Come on, Kagome!"

She turned and said absently, "Coming…" Giving whatever it was one last glance, she walked over to them, and they continued around the corner and out of sight. After they were gone, Shippou ran over and hopped up to try to look into the window. "I – I can't see!"

Miroku walked to him and put him on his shoulder, staring at a game that was on display. It had a boy on the front holding a sword before him as a shield, with the face of a dragon on one side of him. (Is it 'Twilight Princess'? LOL) The words 'DrakenGard 3' were painted in red on the poster, and underneath it said, "Raised by a dragon, trained by the knights, this boy, once again, is the only one who can save us all." (I made this up, but there really is a number one and two. I only have two, though…sighs…oh well)

"Sounds cool!" Shippou bounced up and down on Miroku's shoulder. "We should get it!"

"But it's rated 'M'." Inuyasha pointed out, his claw hovering over the rating. The kitsune, however, said, "I meant for Kagome! She wanted to get it!"

"Yes," Miroku agreed, "The look of longing in her eyes as they lingered over the poster…"

"Must be a cool-ass game…" Inuyasha mumbled, looking at the price. "Eh, it's around twenty bucks. Easy present!" He put his hands into his pockets, then frowned. He patted all of his pockets for a moment, then chuckled nervously, "I forgot my wallet…"

Miroku and Shippou didn't have any money either, and the little youkai whined, "What are we gonna do _now?_ This is the best present _ever_, and we can't even get it!"

Sesshoumaru stared at the poster, examining the boy's cold face as he held his blood-stained sword. His eyes were cold and ruthless, like a killing machine. The dragon gave the boy a sideways glance as his mouth hung open slightly, flames licking over his tongue and around his teeth. With a closer look, a transparent woman's face showed in the background, her eyes closed and her hands over her heart as if she were praying. Then, feeling eyes on him, he glanced at Inuyasha and said, "What?"

"You always have your wallet." He stated. "You have money with you."

The kitsune looked at the youkai hopefully, but Sesshoumaru simply asked, "Why is it you must state the obvious?"

"Aww, come on, Sesshoumaru-sama!" Shippou grabbed his pants leg and pleaded. "I promise I'll pay you back! You just gotta help us get it!" He looked up at him with a puppy face, his little claws clinging to him. The inu youkai glared down at him, but Miroku said, "I shall pay you back if I must. It is only to brighten Kagome's day. Please." He stared at him, his face serious as he waited for him to think about his deal.

"Hell, _I'll _pay you back _twofold_, dammit!" Inuyasha growled at him. "Just let us get the damn game!"

Sesshoumaru looked at the three staring at him; Shippou's pleading eyes, Miroku's silence, and Inuyasha's angry glare. He glanced at the poster once more, wondering why on earth they wanted it so badly. Such trivial things like this were what would occupy a child's time. So why did she desire it? He gave another look down at Shippou holding his leg, and he tossed a twenty dollar bill from seemingly nowhere down to him. He immediately brightened up and snatched it out of the air, saying, "Thanks, Sesshoumaru-sama!" He ran into the store happily, and Miroku smiled at Inuyasha. The hanyou, however, just smirked at the inu youkai and taunted, "It seems you're getting soft, 'Sesshoumaru-sama'."

Miroku went to warn him, but Sesshoumaru beat him to it. "If you don't hold your tongue," he threatened harshly, "you'll be walking home." He turned away and strode off, leaving the two to wait for Shippou. After he had gotten it, they went to the front to find the youkai already waiting in his car. As they got in, Shippou smiled and thanked him again. Sesshoumaru said nothing as he pulled out of the parking lot, but Miroku could see his thoughts swirling in his golden orbs. _If only I could read minds, _he thought with a mental sigh as he made sure the two in the back wouldn't break the game they had just got.

**DLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDLDL**

Kagome was surprised to walk into the building with all of the guys sitting in chairs on the stage. Even Sesshoumaru was there, glancing up at her before going back down to his newspaper. Miroku looked between the two Taishou brothers before he got up and greeted the girls. "Welcome home, Kagome!" He smiled as she immediately back away from his hug. "Aww, why are you afraid?"

Sango rolled up her sleeves, ready to punch him as she growled, "She's afraid of your_hand_, lecher!" Before she could punch him, though, Kagome quickly stood between the two and said, "Let's _not _hurt anyone as soon as breathe, okay?" Her friend glared at Miroku for a moment more before she put her hand down, grumbling, "Fine…"

He gave Kagome one of his charming smiles and said, "You saved me! Thank you, Kagome, and welcome back."

She smiled back at him and said, "That's okay, Miroku. I really appreciate –" She stopped as she was suddenly bowled over by a certain kitsune. She patted Shippou on the head and said, "It's nice to see you, too!"

He got off of her, and as she dusted herself off he told her, "Come here! We wanna give you something!"

Kagome blinked in surprise and repeated, "'Give me something'? What is it?" She walked over as Shippou pulled out a bag from under Inuyasha's chair.

"If we told you, it wouldn't be a surprise!" The little youkai tugged her arm and said, "Open it! Quick!"

"Hold on, Shippou! It's not like it's going to run away!" Sakura frowned at him, and then looked at the other men and asked, "You guys got her something?"

Inuyasha nodded. "A-yep."

The cougar youkai raised an eyebrow. "While we were gone?"

Miroku nodded as well. "Yes."

"And you brought Shippou with you?"

"Yes, Sakura-mama! Of course!" Shippou crossed his arms and asked her, "Do you really think I'd let them run off on their own?"

"No, of course not, Shippou!" She smiled and gave him a big hug. He made a face and whined, "Let go of me!" Sakura smiled as she let go, watching him dust himself off, before turning to Kagome and urging her, "Go ahead, let's see what they got."

Kagome smiled, and she stuck her hand into the bag. When she touched it, she froze. She could feel the plastic around the hard rectangular shape, meaning it was either a movie or… "Hold on…" She slowly wrapped her fingers around the edge and pulled it up out of the bag. She stared at the back of the game, whispering, "No way…"

"Oh, yes way!" Shippou sang happily, before Inuyasha made him stop bouncing around by bonking him on the head. He received a glare from Sakura, but they all diverted their attention back to Kagome as she slowly turned the game around…

"_Oh Great Kami-sama, it's DrakenGard 3!_" She squealed loudly, and everyone (including Miroku and Sango) had to cover their ears. She looked around at everyone, her cheery smile back on her face. "Thanks, you guys! I can't _believe _you bought this for me! I've wanted it for _so long_ now!" She hugged it to her chest, bouncing from foot to foot as her smile got wider while she thought of how long she had waited to finally have it in her grasp.

"Actually…" Inuyasha looked up at the ceiling, casually scratching his ear with a claw. "We didn't really get it. Sesshoumaru gave us the money."

The youkai looked at him in surprise, saying rather out-of-character-like, "Huh?" He wasn't expecting him to mention that, thinking the hanyou would try to take all the credit. And what reason would he not to? It _was_him and his friends' idea, of course.

"Oh, _thank you, Sesshoumaru-san!_" And, of course, he wasn't expecting Kagome to squeal again (making his hands fly to his ears) and suddenly hug him. He was taken aback by her behavior, and the scent of perfume she had probably sprayed on during the shopping trip didn't help his mind catch up, filling his head with the smell of rose petals. It reminded him of the smell she had on 'karaoke night', when she had ran out with barely contained tears. He stood still as she realized what she was doing, and she let go and bowed her head in embarrassment. "I-I'm sorry, Sesshoumaru-sama. I won't do it again."

"Eh, don't be so stiff, Sessh." Inuyasha grinned at his brother. "I mean, it's just a hug."

_He planned that!_ "Do not call me that." The youkai said through gritted teeth.

Shippou hugged Kagome again and said, "It's great to see you smiling again!"

Miroku agreed, his charm on his face despite the two angry brothers. "Such a wonderful thing is rare to come by."

"Oh, really…" Kagome blushed and looked away. "Stop embarrassing me!"

"It's only the truth!" He bowed his head and gave her a smile. "Now, may we see what you bought?"

"Of course!" Kagome smiled, already feeling much better now. She glanced at Sesshoumaru once more, then giggled, "Why not?"

_Commentaries_

Shadowpaw: (is looking amazed) 23 frickin' pages? How much time do you have on your hands? And that's in _how _many days now?

DL: A few.

Shadowpaw: HOLY CRAP!

DL: Actually, that's not that much. I have another story that's in the hundreds now. (sticks tongue out) so there.

Shadowpaw: Oh…(looks at page number) …BUT IT'S 23 PAGES!!!

DL: (sighs) stop screaming, you're hurting everyone's ears.

Everyone: (holding ears with hands)

Shadowpaw: Oh…(chuckles nervously) Sorry…

Sesshoumaru: (growls) You should be.

Inuyasha: Hey, what was the big deal with the hug? I mean, it's just –

Sesshoumaru: This Sesshoumaru doesn't like hugs.

DL: Oh, great Kami-sama, I've read too much of Striking Falcon's stories…(sweatdrops)

Kagome: I'm really sorry! I won't do it again. (bows head)

DL: Not if I can help it…MUAHAHAHA! (continues laughing maniacally)

Inuyasha: That sounds like fun. Can I watch? (DL nods) YEAH! (hugs DL)

DL: Uhh…get off.

Inuyasha: Oh. Yeah. (lets go)

Miroku: Careful; Sakura might get jealous.

Inuyasha & Sakura: What?

Everyone: (whistling innocently) nothing!

Shadowpaw: Oh, and NOW IT'S 24!

**P.S. In the next chapter, there will be a bit of spoilers for the real two DrakenGard games, so if you don't want to know what happens, don't read that part of the chapter!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **Inuyasha does _not _belong to me. If it did, would I be here right now, or would I be in Oahu, Hawaii enjoying my (_rich_)vacation?

_No one knows the story of tomorrow's dawn. _**– An Ashanti (Ghana) Proverb**

Kagome hummed to herself as she walked into the house. "Hey, Mama!" She let her mother give her a kiss on the cheek before she took in the aroma from the stove. "What are you cooking?"

"Brownies." Her mother replied simply, checking the timer once more. "Souta's class is having a party, and I want him to bring something in."

Kagome smiled and said, "That's great!" She strolled over to the fridge and searched through the top before taking out a fudgesicle. She loved them so much, and her mother would tease her about her sweet tooth. She unwrapped it, depositing the trash into the bin by the door, and put it into her mouth, smiling as she savored the fudginess of it all.

"Kagome-chan, can you get me a glass of water while you're over there?" She wiped her forehead and said, "I've been working in the kitchen for a while."

"Mhm!" She nodded and opened the cabinet, holding the popsicle stick with one hand as she grabbed a glass. She filled it with some ice and tap water and handed it to her grateful mother. As she said 'thank you' and took a big gulp, Kagome tried to take the fudgesicle out of her mouth to say 'you're welcome', but found that it was stuck. She frowned (well, the equivalent of a frown when you have something in your mouth) and pulled, but it had frozen to her lips. She pulled a bit harder but stopped when it began to hurt. Her lips were freezing, and she tapped her mother on the shoulder and pointed at the popsicle. "Mmhmmm!"

As she looked at her daughter, she sighed and grabbed the wooden stick. She carefully twisted it a bit, and Kagome gave an 'ouch!' as she pulled it out of her mouth. She licked her lips with a hurt look on her face as her mother shook her head and sighed. She returned to cooking after handing her the popsicle, and she left the room gently licking it as she walked up the stairs to her room. She ignored the rock music seeping from behind Souta's door and walked into her room, tapping the door shut with her foot. She sighed and sat in her chair in front of her computer and turned it on, wondering if any of her friends were on.

As she logged in, she glanced at the loading buddy list for a moment. None of her old friends were online, but Sango, Inuyasha, and Sesshoumaru were. She smiled and sent Sango, 'hey!'

After a moment, 'Hey, what's up?'

'Nothing much,' she typed before she sent two separate messages to the two Taishou brothers. Inuyasha immediately replied with, 'Yo! Wazzup?' She giggled at this and replied, 'Not much, just sitting bored at home. Mama's cooking some brownies in the kitchen and the smell is torturing me!'

'Welcome to my world!'

She laughed at that, then replied to Sango's 'hello?' with, 'Sorry, I was talking to Inuyasha. Wanna join a chat room with him?'

'Sure!'

Kagome smiled and asked Inuyasha if he wanted to join, and when he agreed she pulled up the window and typed, 'Are you guys here?'

'Yep!'

'Of course!'

Kagome typed in, 'So, how's it at you guys' houses? Anything special?'

It took them a while to respond, and Kagome spent the time wondering if Inuyasha, since he was half-youkai, had as good senses as his brother. Of course, whether he was full youkai or not, Sesshoumaru would probably be better anyways. He always made sure that, no matter what he did, he was always superior. _Harsh, much… _Then, another window popped up, and she saw Sesshoumaru type questioningly, 'Who is this?'

Kagome was glad he actually responded and answered, 'It's Kagome, silly! My username is KagChanOX, for Pete's sake!'

'How did you get my username?'

'Uhh…if I say Inuyasha, will you kill him?'

'Figures…' He stopped typing then, and Kagome had a chance to reply to the chat room occupants' messages. Sango had said that she and Kohaku had been practicing riding together, playing some game called 'duck' or whatever, although she assured her there were no ducks involved in the game. It included riding horses and trying to throw the 'duck' (in their case, a ball) into one of two hoops on either side of the field. It seemed like basketball and horseback riding combined.

Inuyasha had complained, 'Sesshoumaru kept on taunting me and all that shit, and then went into his workshop and locked the door. He hasn't come out since.'

'What does he taunt you about?' Kagome asked him curiously.

He took a while to type, as if he wrote something and then deleted it and retyped before he sent, 'He's nagging about the band again. No big deal.' Then, as an afterthought, he added, 'He's still a pain in the ass, though. Can you message him and bother him for me? He's blocked me, the jackass…'

'Actually, I sent him a 'hey' same time I did you. He asked who I was, and when I told him he just stopped talking.'

'Did he ask how you got his screen name?'

'Well, yeah…was I supposed to tell him?'

'Shit…' He was quiet for a moment, before he wrote, 'Hold on, I think that's him at the door.' Sango typed an 'uh oh' as he left the chat room. Kagome frowned, hoping she didn't get the hanyou into trouble. 'Did I do something wrong?'

'Well, I can't say that you or Inuyasha did, but it was kind of wrong to give it to you without asking first.'

'Inuyasha, ask Sesshoumaru? LOL That'll be the day!'

They both put in 'lol' again before suddenly Inuyasha joined the room again with, 'Did ya miss me?'

'No!' Sango typed, but it was soon followed by a 'lol' from both of the girls. Inuyasha put a crying smilie and said, 'That's not nice!'

'Too bad!' Sango said with a grinning smilie, and then put one that had a halo over it as she said, 'Jk, it's nice to know you're alive!'

'Did you get into any big trouble?' Kagome asked with concern, putting a frowning dog smilie beside it (all of her smilies are dogs, since she loves them). She really didn't want to cause any trouble for her friend. She gave a sigh of relief when Inuyasha said, 'Nah, he just threatened to take out baby pictures. Oh, and to slit my throat. You know, the usual.'

'He's never…done anything like that before, has he?'

'Nope! That bastard's all bark and no bite!'

Kagome smiled, thanking whatever guardian angel that was watching over Inuyasha. _I was sure something bad might have happened…_ Just to make sure, she told them 'hold on' before clicking over to the window with Sesshoumaru. She typed in, 'I'm sorry to bother you. I didn't know you would get angry. I'll leave you alone if you want.'

After a moment of no response, 'If that mutt gives you anything else, you would do well to do the same.'

Kagome gave an angry huff and asked him, 'Why do you have to be so mean?' She put a dog smilie with a red face and white smoke pouring out of its ears. It actually looked really funny, but she tried to ignore it as she waited for Sesshoumaru's reply. Finally, after a while of her glaring at the screen, he began typing, and up popped up, 'I'm not mean. He's just a moron.'

'You got that from happy bunny!'

'What is a 'happy bunny'?'

'You don't know what happy bunny is? Lol!' She shook her head at the youkai. _He can be odd sometimes_. She giggled when he typed, 'What is 'lol'?'

'It means 'laugh out loud', silly! You know, like when you laugh at someone?' She put another 'lol' and laughed out loud in real life. "I can't believe him!" All of her anger was gone as she wondered how he could be serious. _Was he even born in the same century? _Then, after a moment, she realized, "Probably not, actually…" She looked at the screen as Sesshoumaru then said, 'Are you laughing at me?'

'Why else would I put that there?'

'You humans are so strange…'

Kagome put a dog smilie with a goofy grin on its face as she typed, 'If you tried to get to know one, maybe we wouldn't seem so strange!'

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Sesshoumaru has just sat down after getting some ibuprofen to stop his pounding headache from Inuyasha's antics when Kagome (or KagChanOX, if you will) had told him, 'I'm sorry to bother you. I didn't know you would get angry. I'll leave you alone if you want.'

Sesshoumaru read over it, thinking darkly, _that is __**exactly **__what I want._ He was going to type that, but, after thinking about it, instead said, 'If that mutt gives you anything else, you would do well to do the same.' He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes with a sigh, thinking that was the end of it. But a jingle on the computer made him open his eyes as he read her reply in surprise.

'Why do you have to be so mean?' And beside it was some kind of cartoon dog face that was red with anger and had steam pouring out of its ear. He stared at the message for a moment, surprised at her choice of smilie. She could have gotten the cat ones (since he remembered something vague about her owning one), or just used the regular yellow faces. But, no, she decided to have dogs. Remembering that she was waiting for his response, he answered her, 'I'm not mean. He's just a moron.'

He hoped that she would stop there, but then she typed, 'You got that from happy bunny!' Frowning at her strange choice of words, he asked her, 'What is a 'happy bunny'?'

'You don't know what happy bunny is? Lol!'

He sat back in his chair, dumbfounded. _What is that human talking about? _After staring at her message trying to find an explanation, he leaned forward and typed, 'What is 'lol'?'

'It means 'laugh out loud', silly! You know, like when you laugh at someone?' He watched as she put in another 'lol' afterwards. While there was a moment of silence, he mused, _why is she laughing at me? _He proceeded to type, 'Are you laughing at me?'

'Why else would I put that there?'

He mentally smirked at her response. _She's got some nerve. This human friend of Inuyasha's is quite…interesting…for lack of a better word._ He replied to her, 'You humans are so strange…'

'If you tried to get to know one, maybe we wouldn't seem so strange!'

_Yes…_ he thought as he stared at her words. _Maybe I should. _

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Kagome sighed in relief as she flopped onto the couch, 'thanking Kami-sama' for no chores. She was wondering on what to do when she noticed her game sitting on the coffee table. _That's right! _She smiled as she picked it up, still wrapped in its protective plastic. _I haven't played it yet! _She walked over and put it into the game console and turned it on, telling herself, "Now's a good time to start!" She sat down, controller in hand, as she watched the opening movie. (_Skip this next paragraph if you don't want me to spoil the games_)

She had fallen in love with the series when her mother showed it to her while they went shopping together one day a couple of years ago. The first one seemed so wonderful, with a human and a dragon being forced to make a pact to save both of their lives. Losing his voice in the process, the human (named Caim) goes through a long road filled with twists and turns, and the multiple endings were beautiful enough to make her buy the sequel. There, she fought as a young boy named Nowe who was raised by a dragon and trained by a knight. His story was filled with betrayal, surprises at every turn as more of his past is brought into the light. The dragon, Legna, turned on him in the end, but the several other endings made up for the disappointment.

(_Alright, spoilers are over!_) "Let's just hope they didn't screw this one up," She mumbled to herself as she picked a new game. She smiled as the first scene started, showing Nowe from the previous game standing on a cliff, the breeze blowing his short brown hair before his eyes as he looked off into the distance. His voice spoke quietly, making her want to squeal as he began, "_It's been years since I last saw you. I wonder if you even remember me. But I remember you. How could I not –_"

"Ooh, this is so _exciting!_" She finally _did_ squeal to herself, barely able to contain her excitement as the game went on with an explanation of what had become of him. She smiled as it finally stopped and it showed him running towards something that looked suspiciously like an army of soldiers. She grinned evilly, her normal sweetness gone as she imagined hacking all of them into little, tiny pieces. "This'll be _so _much fun!"

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It was now Tuesday, and Kagome was glad that today (as well as yesterday) had been holidays. That was why she was chatting online yesterday and playing her game when she would normally be at school. Today, she was going with Sango over to the Taishou household and hang out with the others. She was also secretly hoping that she could actually get to talk to Sesshoumaru. _He was really funny, although he didn't mean to be. And it was really nice of him to help buy that game. I wonder what else he'll surprise me with. _They pulled up in the house's driveway, and as they got out Miroku came out to greet them. "Hello, ladies!" He gave one of his charming smiles to Sango, but she just stuck her nose up at him and 'hmphed'. Kagome nodded at him and said, "So, are you guys practicing today?"

Miroku looked back at the raven-haired girl and shook his head. "Inuyasha's obsessing over how we should keep practicing, but Sakura finally convinced him to take a break. Of course," he added as an afterthought, "she said either that or she would give him a 'break'."

Sango sighed and shook her head. "When will those two grow up?"

Kagome laughed and joked, "Either when they realize they like each other, or when pigs sprout wings and fly!"

They all laughed at that, and they walked into the house to find Inuyasha in the living room grumbling to himself. He was sitting on a cream sofa that had wonderful brown pillows to accompany the tan rug, and a glass coffee table had an arrangement of different things that seemed to have slowly collected over the years; old keys, pieces of paper, and ticket stubs as well as an assortment of other things were all placed in a bowl on the table, and important looking papers sat beside a mug on a wooden coaster. He looked up at them, and his scowl was immediately replaced with a grin as he moved aside some newspapers to let them sit down. He said, "Glad you came! I didn't like the idea of being left with a pervert and two pain-in-the-ass youkai. Oh, and the runt, too." He snickered as he heard a certain kitsune yell from another room, "Hey! I heard that!"

"Would you like a drink?" Miroku offered the two ladies, but Sango shook her head. "That's alright, I don't want anything."

"Are you sure? You're not being a burden." He smiled as the blush on her face signaled he had hit a bulls-eye on her thoughts. "Don't worry, I don't mind." She stared at him for a moment, realizing he was trying to be nice, and she finally took his offer, "Okay, I'll have a soda, anything you got." He looked at the girl beside her, and she told him, "A Coca-Cola, please." He smiled and nodded, turning around and walking into the kitchen. As the door closed behind him, Kagome glanced at Sango and found herself giggling at the look on her face. She looked at her amused friend in confusion as she asked her, "What?"

"Oh, nothing!" Kagome tried to stop herself, but she still leaked a little laugh as Sango looked at her curiously. Inuyasha was interested as well, and the two looked at each other and shrugged as Kagome put her hand over her mouth to help her stop laughing. She mentally scolded herself for giggling, but the way Sango had watched him leave…it was just too funny! When she finally calmed down, she smiled as Shippou ran into the room to hug her. She scratched behind his ear and said sweetly, "How's my favorite little youkai doing?"

He whined, "Aww, Kagome-chan!" The grin on his face, though, showed he liked the attention. He bounced up and down and asked her, "Wanna go play?" He was full of energy and was just bursting to let it out.

Kagome smiled and said, "Alright! Let's go!" She let Shippou lead her outside after Inuyasha's comment about 'running around in the house like lunatics', and they ran to the backyard with the young kitsune giggling as she tried to catch him. He was small, but _boy _was he a fast little guy! "I'm gonna get you!" Kagome teased him, but she laughed as Shippou stuck his tongue out at her. "I'd like to see you try!" He quickly ran over to a tree and scrambled up the trunk, giggling even more as Kagome complained, "That's not fair!"

"You can't get me, you can't get me!" Shippou taunted her, spitting down at her as she put her hands on her hips and huffed. She examined the tree's branches with a frown, inspecting them to make sure they were safe, before she reached up and grabbed a branch. She put a foot up onto the bark and pulled herself up, quickly grabbing the branch with her other hand as she struggled to reach the little youkai teasing her from on high. She grinned as she got up on the first branch and began to climb more eagerly as she teased, "I'm coming to get you!"

"No way!"

She climbed rather fast for a girl (at least that's what Shippou thought) as he kept retreating up the tree higher and higher. He didn't dare to go any higher than twenty-five feet as he watched her struggle below. "Ummm, Kagome-chan? I really don't think you should –"

"Yikes!" Suddenly, her foot slipped as she tried to grab a higher branch, and she quickly grabbed it as her feet dangled under her. She was about twenty feet or so from the ground, and she didn't look down in case she froze in fear. He heard the kitsune above yell, "Hold on, I'm coming!" He quickly scampered down the branches and grabbed her hand, not noticing the branch creak under the new weight. It was only when it began to crack that Kagome gasped, "Shippou-chan, look out!" She was too late, however, as it snapped under both of their weight and they fell towards the ground. She grabbed Shippou with one hand while wildly reaching for something to hold onto with the other. She was unsuccessful, however, as she only earned a long cut along her left arm as they continued to speed down. She closed her eyes, knowing that at least she would cushion Shippou's fall –

_Whoosh!_

Kagome gasped in surprise as strong arms suddenly grabbed her and the kitsune in her arms, but she was too afraid to open her eyes until the sensation of falling disappeared and her hair wasn't flying up. Slowly, she opened her eyes to look at a shocked Shippou, and she was about to ask what was wrong when she heard:

"It isn't bright to fall from trees, _human_."

She glanced up at the voice as her eyes grew wide to see Sesshoumaru's face looking down at her with an arrogant smirk. He was holding her 'bridal style', as some people would call it, with her left side to his muscular chest. She blushed as she looked down away from his face, ignoring Shippou's questioning look as she heard the others running over to them.

"Kagome! Are you alright?" Inuyasha glared at the inu youkai and spat, "What are you doing? What'd you do to her?"

"I assure you that I did not harm her." He said in a rather bored tone as he let the two down from his arms. He looked down at his shirt and frowned at a line of blood on it, then looked up to see Kagome covering her left arm. Curious, he grabbed her arm and raised it, ignoring the startled 'eep!' on her part, and examined the cut. It wasn't exceptionally deep, but it was still a nasty cut as blood trickled down her arm. Sango gasped and asked her, "Where'd you get that? Are you alright?"

"Really, I-I'm fine." Kagome tried not to look up at the inu youkai as she smiled at the concerned looks on her friends' faces. "I just got a scratch from a branch in the tree. No big deal."

_She always tries to stop them from being concerned. _Sesshoumaru looked at her as she patted Shippou's head with her free hand and tried to reason to him that she would be fine. _She doesn't want them to worry about her. Why? _He mused for a while more, before he tightened his already firm grip on her arm and started to pull her towards the house. She gasped at his sudden jerk and asked, "What are you doing?"

"That cut will get infected if you don't clean it properly," he stated simply as he dragged her inside. She tried to reason that she didn't need him to help her, but he ignored her as he took her to the bathroom down the hall. He let go of her arm and pushed her (gently) to make her sit down on the lid of the toilet, and he handed her a towel as he opened the medicine cabinet in there, his eyes searching the rows for what he was looking for. She carefully took it, wondering why he was doing this. She was afraid to ask, however, since it would seem rude, and so she just stayed quiet as she wet the cloth and held it up to the cut to try to stop the bleeding.

Sesshoumaru, however, was silently wondering why he was doing this as well. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye to see her biting her lip as she watched the towel turn redder and waited for the bleeding to stop. She had said she was fine, but the cut did seem to hurt her. His searching hands finally came upon what he was looking for, and he took out the antiseptic and set it beside the sink as he stood and stared at her, watching her eyes occasionally glance over in his direction.

Eventually, she peeked under the towel and was satisfied to find that she wasn't bleeding anymore. Sesshoumaru took it without a word, ignoring her apologies for 'ruining the towel'. He didn't care about the fabric, as they had many more towels lying around in the house, and so he simply handed her the antiseptic as he walked out to get rid of the towel. He didn't need the stink of human blood in his house, anyway. As he returned he found her patiently waiting, and when she looked up she smiled and handed back the cream. He didn't return the gesture (not that Kagome _thought _he would) but simply asked, "Why didn't you want assistance?"

Kagome looked down shyly, a little embarrassed that the inu youkai had to help her. "It's not that…I don't _want_ help…" Her eyes were on the ground as she smiled for a moment, but it seemed to be a bittersweet motion. "Why have others help _me_…when it could be put to better use somewhere else?" She looked up at him, her smile now completely bright as she said, "Someone else in the world might need it more than I do!"

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Sesshoumaru sat down in the chair in his workshop, moving the mouse slightly to awaken his computer. It immediately asked him for the password, and as he typed it instinctively he wondered if his half-breed brother was still in his room swearing at thin air. He smirked, remembering how he had finally gotten around to taunting him about the incident in the mall. His brother had immediately started yelling at him about keeping to his own business and leaving _his _alone, and then the youkai had questioned why he called the cougar youkai 'his'. The hanyou had stopped to think about it, but when he did his face turned a decent shade of red as he roared for him to get the 'effin' hell' away from him.

He logged on slightly pleased with himself, rolling his eyes at his screen name. It was his father's idea, not his. He wouldn't have made it 'AlmightyInuKing' even if he was paid to. But, his father had said it was the only one he would get, and so he dealt with it grumbling darkly about somehow living up to his username. Now, though, it was a mere annoyance as he checked his email for anything important. He was caught off guard as a window popped up in front of his letterbox with a reply from KagChanOX that said, 'Heya! Watchya doing?'

The inu youkai rolled his eyes in the safety of his workshop, saying aloud, "She really is a strange human." He sighed and typed, 'I am looking through my mail.'

'Oh…' She wrote, as if she had nothing to answer that, and he smirked as he continued to look through his mail. He found something from his father, or 'GreatInuYoukai', and wondered if he should read it. _Of course, it could be just business. Or, _he thought with a sigh, _it could be another of his 'wise lectures'. The only thing me and that hanyou shall ever agree on is how tiresome he is whenever he starts one of his speeches. _He shrugged and decided to open it, thinking that it couldn't be too bad because at least he could skip through it if he wanted to. He looked at the first line and mentally groaned.

'_Dear Sesshoumaru,_

_I hope you are getting along well with your brother while I am gone – it would not be good for me to come home to the house in flames and both of you fighting like crazed pups. _

Sesshoumaru growled angrily, "I am not a _pup_."

_But, on a happier note, I would like to thank you for watching the house while I was away. I have heard a lot from Inuyasha (why do you refrain from replying to my emails? It's as if you don't like me sending them) and he says that he's gotten two new friends. Is that true? I'm surprised you've let two humans walk within ten feet of you! _

_Joking aside, I've also heard that Inuyasha has given one of them your screen name. Hers is KagChanOX, is it not? Well, I've heard she is a wonderfully kind young lady, so please do not scare her._

"Why would I scare her?" He frowned, wondering what his father's words meant. _Then again, I hate humans. What could be more frightening than crossing paths with a human-hating youkai?_

_Of course, I shouldn't worry about that, after what __**else **__your brother has told me. Although this is only one side of the story and I would really like to hear yours, or at least hers. Now, he said that the girl (Kagome, right?) was playing with that young kitsune when she fell out of a tree. She received a gash on her arm, but otherwise was saved from further injury when you (which surprised me) caught her. Is there anything I'm missing here? Is he making something up to amaze me? If he did, it sure has worked. _

_And then, you dragged her into the house, and when both of you returned her cut had stopped bleeding and had some gauze wrapped around it._

_Yes… _He thought back to that day, remembering how she laughed at the little kitsune when he said he would catch her next time. _She had insisted that she have it so that her mother wouldn't worry too much._

_So tell me, son, what exactly __**have **__you been doing? You're letting your old man get ideas…_

_Signed, YF_

_Figures…_ Sesshoumaru sighed in annoyance at the 'YF' at the end that stood for 'Your Father', not even wanting to imagine what crazy idea his father was getting. _I'm going to kill that half-breed._

Then, a jingle alerted him before the window from his previous conversation with Kagome popped back up. 'Hello?' She had a small dog smilie that looked as if it was concerned. The inu youkai shrugged away the thought, though, as he replied, 'I am alive, before you ask. What is it that makes you so worried of my existence?'

He was being difficult and mean on purpose. Obviously, she knew that as well, as it showed in her message, 'You're such a jerk!' The angry dog smilie sat beside the words, glaring at him angrily like she would.

'You have told me that many times before. Now, what is it that makes you ask for me?'

He seemed to have stunned her into silence, as she did not reply for a while. _Maybe it's the fact that I can read her like a book, even when we are not face-to-face, _he thought, smirking to himself. _Humans are more predictable than I thought._

'Thank you.'

He stopped, staring at her message. He said aloud 'what?' before remembering she wouldn't be able to hear that. He quickly replied, 'Say again?' He tapped his fingers on the keyboard, awaiting for a response. _I stand corrected, _he mused as the little alert that told him she was typing popped up. After a while, she finally sent the message for him to see. 'First of all, thank you for getting me that game. It's so _awesome!_ Do you even _understand _that this game is one of most wanted games in the _world?_ People are almost _dying_to get it!' Then, after the little smilie that grinned widely at him, she continued, 'Also, I thank you for helping me before. If you hadn't been there to catch me, and Shippou –'

_It seems she added that as an afterthought…_

'Let's just say I wouldn't be here to thank you for it. And by the way, you wrapped the gauze too tight!' A frowning smilie and a crying one sat side-by-side and stared at him, making him start to wonder if she chose that set just to use the puppy eyes. _Not that it would work on me. _He replied, 'If you weren't moving so much, I wouldn't have had trouble getting it on and potentially loosening it. Honestly, you humans…'

'Jerk!'

'You're lucky you're on the other side of a computer screen, and not face-to-face.' He growled to himself, "Otherwise I would regret having done that in vain."

'I'm not scared of you!' She replied immediately, a little dog sticking its tongue out at him. He glared at it, wondering if he could make it disappear if he kept it up. He cast an annoyed glance at another desk, where his shirt with _that human's _blood on it lay. "Ungrateful little –" Another message from her popped up, and he was going to ignore her when he glanced at it.

'Well, maybe a little…'

_Well…_ He smirked at the screen as he flexed his fingers, ready to type. _This shall be interesting…_

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As Kagome walked towards the line, she felt someone put their hands on her shoulders. After a moment of surprise, she turned around and relaxed as she saw it was only Inuyasha. He grinned at her and said, "Hey! Mind if I join?"

"Maybe…" She smiled and poked his shoulder at his frown. "I'm just teasing!"

"Yeah, I know!" He shook his head as he followed behind her into the line. As he watched her pick up a box that suspiciously looked as if it held a salad in it, he couldn't help but smile a little. _Man, she's pretty…_ When she looked at him and gave him her sweet smile, however, he quickly snapped out of it and pointed a claw at the box. "Do you plan on going on a diet, Skin-and-Bones?"

She scowled at him playfully, and he couldn't help but chuckle as she laughed. She was great to have around. Then, as his mind wandered, a question came to him. He turned to her and asked, "Kagome?"

She looked at him immediately, an apple in her hand as she answered, "Yes, Inuyasha-chan?"

"How come you always come over to my house, and yet I've never been to yours?"

"Hmm…" Kagome put a finger on her chin as if she was thinking. While they moved forward in line, she turned to him and said truthfully, "I don't know…" She tilted her head like a curious pup and asked, "Do you want to?"

"Yeah!" He grinned at the idea. "I would love to finally get to see your house." After a moment of thought, "Do we have to bring the others, though?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well…" Inuyasha scratched the back of his neck nervously. "Sakura's a big pain in the ass, Miroku would be his normal pervert self, Shippou would be an annoying runt…"

"What about Sango-chan?"

"I was kinda hoping to, you know, spend some time with you…" He looked away embarrassed, his face a bit red. "Without the others…"

"Oh?" Kagome looked at him for a moment, considering something, before she smiled at him. "Alright!"

"Really?" Inuyasha looked up at her kind smile, feeling a bit warm as she nodded with a 'yep!', and he grinned at her and said, "Cool!" He felt triumphant as she laughed, her voice like a warm summer breeze tickling his ears. _I get to hang out with her…__**alone.**__ Could this get any better?_

"Did I mention that Mama just bought some Ramen the other day? I hope you don't mind, it's chicken, and –"

"Great!" Inuyasha's grin was ear-to-ear as he thought to himself, _I think I'm in heaven…_

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"Come on, Inuyasha-chan!" Kagome was pulling him towards her house excitedly. "I bet my mother would be _glad_ to finally meet you!" He seemed a bit nervous while she had told Sango to tell the others to practice without them for a while, and he wondered if they would get angry at them. _I can just imagine Sakura's face! She'll tug her ponytail down and put it back up to try to calm her nerves. _He grinned as Kagome slid open the door, snapping out of his thoughts when she called out, "I'm home!"

The sound of little footsteps made his ears swivel, and he looked up to see a little boy standing there with his hands behind his back. Kagome glared at the boy as she said, "Souta, this is Inuyasha." Souta's eyes were wide as he looked up at him, his hands fidgeting behind him, and he muttered something about a 'new plan' including 'squirt guns' and 'balloons'. He turned around to run back upstairs, but gave a small 'eep!' when Kagome grabbed him by his shoulder and asked him angrily, "You weren't mumbling about another one of your tricks, were you?"

"Nope!" He squirmed from her grip and dashed up the stairs two at a time, and she sighed and shook her head. "I should have seen that coming…" She had her hands on her hips with her weight on one foot, as if she was posing for something, before she turned back around and smiled at the hanyou. "Come on!"

She gently pulled him into the living room, and they came in to see her mother sitting on the couch with the game console controller in her hand. She didn't seem to notice them as her trigger finger pounded hot lead into a Hunter (Halo! Sweet!) as she yelled, "Take that, Covenant scum!"

"_Ahem…_" Kagome cleared her throat to get her attention, and she paused the game and looked up at the two. "So you've finally decided to let me see this 'friend' of yours?"

The girl nodded, and she gave Inuyasha a slight shove forward muttering, "Go ahead! Say hi!" The hanyou cleared his throat and said, "Good evening, Ms. Higurashi."

"Aww, he's such a gentleman!" The woman laughed as he blushed a little, and she stood up and bowed slightly. "Please, just call me Mama. Everyone else does." He nodded, and she smiled and gave Kagome a hug. "It's so nice to finally get to see you at home, dear!" She looked at her daughter with a teasing look in her eyes. "I was beginning to worry that you moved out without ever telling me!"

"_Mama!_" She scowled, but she laughed and hugged her again. Mama laughed as well, and Inuyasha couldn't help but feel safe around these two. _I can see where she gets her looks from…_ He barely paid attention to the conversation the two woman started as he examined them both. Kagome's mother – or should I say Mama – looked almost exactly like her daughter, except she was (obviously) more mature, and her eyes twinkled with some sort of hidden wisdom. He wondered what she was thinking as he distantly listened to them talk.

"When shall I meet the rest of your new friends?" Mama asked her, curiosity making itself known through her voice. Her daughter smiled and said, "Soon enough! After all, there is that party coming up soon!"

"Party?" Inuyasha came out of his thoughts when he heard the word. "What party?"

"My birthday party!" Kagome twirled around giggling. "It's coming up soon!"

"Seriously?!" The hanyou slapped his forehead. _Man, I wish she had told me sooner! That way I could have gotten her something!_

"Don't worry, Inuyasha-chan!" Kagome smiled at him warmly. "You don't need to get me anything! I just want you guys to be here, that's all!"

He looked at her, wondering how she had known that was what worried him. _Am I really__**that **__easy to read? _He looked at her mother, seeing that same twinkle in her eyes. _And what's she smiling about?_ He shook his head and, after a moment of thought, gave a groan and grumbled, "I suppose that means I'll have to bring my brother, too…"

Kagome couldn't help but laugh at that, and as the mother looked between the two she asked them, "What am I missing here that you two seem to know about?"

"My stuffy-ass –"

"_Inuyasha!_"

_Thwack!_

"I mean, my annoying older brother," He rubbed his head tenderly where Kagome had hit him. He frowned as Mama laughed at them both, but before he could ask why she questioned, "What is he like?"

"Well, he can be…difficult at times," he took the warning glare Kagome had given him, "He always acts 'cool' and 'collected'," he made apostrophes with his fingers, then scoffed and muttered, "But he's always trying to get me angry or humiliate me, one way or another. He likes to lock himself up in his workshop all day, and gets angry at me when the band's practice 'interrupts' him, but whatever it is we're interrupting I'll probably never know."

"Hmmm…" Mama put a finger to her lips, which was what Kagome had done earlier that day. She really did look a lot like her daughter, (although it was really the other way around) and he couldn't help but smile at the picture she made. She finally raised her finger and poked him in the nose, and as he grabbed it and asked 'what was that for?' she laughed and told him, "Don't be so mean to your brother! He probably doesn't know how to deal with a younger brother, and so he tries to find your little quirks and perks by seeing how you react to his insults." She wagged the finger in front of his face. "You're letting him win this by reacting with anger, when you should instead just ignore it and walk away. Fighting never solves anything," she added as she gave a knowing smile towards her daughter. Kagome glanced up at the ceiling in the direction towards Souta's room, and she mentally sighed. _Okay, Mama, I get the point._

The hanyou frowned. "Really? You think that's it?"

"Take Kagome and Souta, for instance."

"_Mama!_" Kagome whined for the second time since she came home. "Don't start _that _again!"

"Oh, hush, dear. It's for a good cause. Now," she turned back to Inuyasha, "her and Souta sound a little like you and your brother. Kagome would pick on Souta whenever she was bored –" She raised a hand to stop Kagome's instant explanations. When she quieted down, she continued, "And Souta would get back by doing things normal little boys do at his age – which would include putting buckets of cold water over her door, flushing while she was in the shower, and making all sorts of traps for her with simple, everyday items." She sighed and shook her head. "He's such a clever little boy."

"He _would _be, if he wasn't such a brat!"

"Kagome!"

"But he _is, _Mama!" She pointed up at where she was positive he was plotting his next evil scheme. "That stuff that you just said now? That wasn't even the _half _of it! He's a criminal _mastermind!_" She said as she waved her hands in the air. "Haven't you ever wondered why Buyo's litterbox is always clean? It's because _he_would put some of that _stuff _into my _room!_ I _step_in it!" She grimaced and instinctively glanced at her shoe, as if she could still see the 'present' there. "Or, when I went to see the band play, he took _all _of my socks and gave them to Buyo as _toys! _I'm not wearing any socks right now!" She raised her foot, and they could see that she was right. "My feet are getting rubbed _raw _because of that twerp!"

"Alright, now that's enough!" Mama looked at her strictly. "He is your brother, whether you want him to be or not, so you might as well _try _to get along with him!"

"But –"

"_No buts. _Period." She looked at Inuyasha and smiled, although a little wearily. "It was nice meeting you, dear. Don't be afraid to come by more often, alright?" At his nod, she walked out into the kitchen to continue working on dinner for that night. Kagome still stood there, angry at her mother, before she sighed and shook her head. "Oh, well. You can't say I didn't _try _to tell her." She turned on her heel and beckoned him to follow her as she started up the stairs. Before she could enter her room, however, she quickly pulled him to the side of the door. He tried to ask what she was doing, but she just put a finger to her lips. He just mentally shrugged as she carefully stood before the door. She grabbed the doorknob carefully, signaling Inuyasha once again to stay quiet, before she quickly swung open the door as she hid behind it.

_Fwap – SPLASH!_

"I knew it…" She sighed as she looked at the ruined water balloon lying across the hall, bursting after it had missed its target. She peeked into her room to see some sort of slingshot-like contraption that was connected to the door. She looked at Inuyasha and smiled the same way her mother had moments before. "See what I mean?"

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"Hey, Inuyasha-chan!"

"Hn?" He grunted and got up from her bed. They had been talking for a while now, in her unbearably pink room, and then she had said that she was going to check something on her computer. She was now tugging his arm as she pointed at the screen. "Sesshoumaru-sama's on!"

"You don't have to call him that, you know." He pointed out as she typed in a 'hey'. He didn't think his brother would reply, and so he was surprised when Sesshoumaru sent back, 'Why are you at your house so early? You usually come over with my half-breed half-brother.'

Kagome rolled her eyes at the 'half' comment and told him, 'That's because I am here with him at my house, and he can read all that you are telling me since he's looking over my shoulder like a curious little puppy.'

"Hey!"

"What?" Kagome giggled. "You are!" She patted his head nicely and smiled at him as he grumbled something about his brother and helping, but she turned her attention back to the screen as the inu youkai replied to the message with, 'And yet you type that while he's watching? Strange, you.'

'Yep, I am!' She put a dog sticking its tongue out at him, and Inuyasha rolled his eyes and asked, "Why is he talking so nicely to you?"

"I don't know," she said truthfully, "but it would be rude to ask." She smiled to herself as Sesshoumaru said back, 'Indeed. That pup better be careful around you.'

"_I am not a pup!_" Inuyasha growled at the computer, ready to do away with the blasted thing, when Kagome put a hand on his shoulder and reminded him, "What did my Mama say about that?" After a moment, she brightened and told him, "Try to think of something witty that will show you aren't angry."

He looked at her questioningly, but then he actually thought about it. _What would my father say? _Eventually, he smirked and sat down, cracking his knuckles before he typed. She didn't get to see what he said until after he got up, and she looked at it with wonder. '(From Inuyasha) You should be careful what you say about women, unless you want YF to start thinking some things…'

"What things?" Kagome asked innocently in the silence between messages, before adding, "And what's a 'YF'?"

Before he could answer, though, Sesshoumaru's reply popped up on the screen. 'Tell that worthless hanyou that if he values his life in any way, he would stop his constant emails to YF.'

"_Who's 'YF'?_" Kagome couldn't see what was so funny, and Inuyasha's smirk confused her even more. Puzzled, she asked him, "What emails?"

"Oh," he started to explain, the grin still on his face, "I send emails to our Dad telling him everything that's happened, and I guess Sessh has finally read one of the letters that Dad sent him." He chuckled. "I can guess just what is going through his head right now!" He crossed his arms and closed his eyes with a sigh, and Kagome giggled at his impression of his brother. "If our father gets any wind that he seems to be softening, he will immediately come down to visit and tell him how proud he is of him." He laughed again, unknowingly leaving her more confused than she was before. He sat down again and replied to Sesshoumaru for her, '(Inu) I don't care what you say, bastard! And you can't do anything about it!' He concluded the message by putting a dog smilie sticking its tongue out at him, which he knew would infuriate him more.

'I can fix that.'

Obviously, it worked. 'You want to come over and rumble? Fine! I don't care!'

"Inuyasha!" Kagome quickly typed back before Inuyasha could say anymore, 'Please don't be angry with him! He doesn't really mean it!' She gave a glare to the hanyou after she sent it, although he just got up from the chair and looked up at the ceiling innocently. He mouthed a 'what?' as she huffed and sat down in her chair. She was going to type something else when Sesshoumaru sent a reply to her plea. 'Are you afraid of me?'

Kagome thought about it for a moment. 'Not for me, for him!'

"Why _me?_"

"Quiet, Inu-chan. You've proven you're point, and _then _some." She sighed, hoping he wasn't too mad at Inuyasha. As she read his next message, though, she got a bit angry. 'You mean you are afraid of me _for_him?'

'No!' She growled aloud as she typed, 'God, sometimes both of you are so _annoying!_' She sighed and rubbed her temples, trying to get rid of the massive headache. She looked up at his response only to scowl and look back down. 'I thought that was what friends are supposed to be for?'

'I should lock up_both _of you somewhere and let you kill each other!' She then put her head down and grumbled, "Why do _I _have to get into this? Why can't I just let things be?"

Inuyasha, though, was looking curiously at Sesshoumaru's last reply. _'I thought that was what friends are for?' What the hell?_ He glanced down at Kagome. _What else does he say to her that I don't know about? _

'That wouldn't be any fun, now would it?'

Kagome just glared at it before replying, 'Grrr…'

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Kagome had gone downstairs to get a drink from the kitchen, leaving Inuyasha alone in her room. He made sure to wait until she was going down the stairs before he snuck onto her dormant computer. The screen turned back on as soon as he jerked the mouse, and he thanked Kami-sama that she was still logged on. He began typing, and quickly sent the message.

After a while, Sesshoumaru replied, 'What is it that you have something 'urgent' about, _hanyou?_'

'It's about Kagome. What was that all about before, with that 'friends' comment? How long have you been talking to her like this?'

'I assure you, half-breed, that what I do is none of your concern.'

'You bet it's my concern, dammit!'

'I wouldn't be talking to her if _you _hadn't given her my username. It is, technically, your fault.'

'Yeah…so? I just want to know why you seem to be all chummy when you're messaging her.' After a moment, he added as he smirked to himself, 'Is YF actually going to come home to a surprise?'

'That is also none of your concern.'

'Alright. Whatever.' His ears twitched as she heard Kagome talking to someone on the phone at the foot of the stairs. 'Just one more thing; Kagome's birthday is coming soon.'

'And that is _my_ concern _why?_ I am notgiving you more money.'

'I wasn't going to ask you for money!' He glanced at the door as he heard her coming up the stairs. 'I was wondering if you were going to give her anything, is all.' _Please walk slower, please walk slower, please walk slower – _

"Kagome!"

Inuyasha sighed in relief as he heard her walk back down the stairs to answer her mother's call. _That was close. _He went back to the computer to read, 'Why should _I _give her a present?'

'Well, before you said 'that you thought that was what friends were for', right? So, _obviously, _you counted yourself as her friend.' _Oh, he's going to be __**so **__angry with me! _He snickered to himself as his brother answered, 'I was merely being sarcastic, although you _would _think of it that way. I am not a friend of a _human_.'

'Okay, sure, and that's why you helped her with that cut on her arm.'

'She was refusing to let anyone else assist her, and otherwise it would have gotten infected.'

'And so _you_ decided to assist her?'

'Do not question me,_hanyou_. You have to come home _eventually._'

'Of course, Almighty Inu King, as you command.'

'You are lucky YF is returning in a week, because he would notice if your emails suddenly ceased.'

'He is??' Inuyasha looked at the screen surprised. 'He didn't tell me that.'

'He didn't…?'

'Nope. Why'd he tell you?'

It took a while for him to answer that. 'You should know, since _you're _the reason he is.'

'I am?'

'You're the only one that keeps in contact with him.'

'Ohh, _that's_what you mean! Don't worry, I won't tell YF _anything _about your sudden fascination with humans!' Before Sesshoumaru had time to reply, the hanyou could hear Kagome returning. He told his brother, 'Gotta go, but remember what I said about the party. You should talk to her about it. Ciao!' He then quickly put the away message back on and closed the window with their chat before turning the monitor off and leaping onto the bed. He laid down on his back and made it look as if he had been staring at the ceiling the entire time as she entered her room. He looked at her suspicious look and said with fake innocence, "What?"

"…Nothing." She still gave him that look, however, as he nodded and went back to staring at the ceiling. His mind was going into over gear as he thought about all he had learned. _So, Sesshoumaru doesn't think he's friends with Kagome, huh? I wonder… _"Hey, Kagome?"

She looked at him. "Yes?"

"Do you think of Sessh as a friend?"

She frowned, curious as to why he would ask a question like that. Then, as she thought about it, she began to wonder about it as well. _I mean, he __**did**__ help me…but that could have been out of pity. But he also bought the game for me…no, he just gave them the money. He didn't really buy it. _She looked up at the ceiling, lost in thought. _Does he even like me in the least?_

"…Well?" The hanyou sat up as he waited for the answer. She sat down absentmindedly beside him, deep in thought. Eventually, she started a bit anxiously, "Well…I guess that, to me, he's very nice and helpful…"

_And why do I feel like there's going to be a 'but'?_

"But…"

_Ahh, that's why._

"All I really _do_ know…is that, no matter what," she smiled at him, "I'll always be there for him if he needs it. And that goes with all of the rest of my friends as well." She giggled as she put her head on her shoulder. "I'll be there for you, too!"

"Uhhh…" Inuyasha blushed at her closeness. He really didn't know what to say about that. "Umm…you…you really mean it?"

"Of course, silly!" She hugged him, either not noticing or ignoring the red on his face. She withdrew after a moment and gave his ear a small tweak. "Why wouldn't I?"

_Hmmm…_ Inuyasha titled his head, earlier embarrassment forgotten. _Would she keep up to that promise? I mean, she is awfully nice and kind-hearted…_

"Is there something wrong, Inu-chan?"

The hanyou shook his head, and then he growled and said, "Don't call me that!"

She giggled and smiled mischievously. "Okay, Inu-chan!"

"Hey! What'd I just say?"

"Inu-chan!"

"Stop it!"

"Make me!" Kagome laughed and ran out of her room, leaving a fuming Inuyasha still sitting on her bed. _Who does she think she is, calling me that? _He finally got up and ran after her, and her laughter and his shouting was heard throughout the entire house.

"Kagome! Come back here!"

"Inu-chan!"

_Commentaries_

DL: Oh, isn't this wonderful? (sniffs) I love it when a story idea is coming together – finally!

Shadowpaw: Don't get all wet, geez… (DL suddenly hugs her) AGH! WATER! GET IT OFF! (runs off screaming)

DL: That's what you get, stupid cat!

Inuyasha: I couldn't have said it better than that!

Sakura: _What was that?_

Inuyasha: (sweatdrops) Nothing!

Sesshoumaru: Stupid hanyou. (takes a couple of steps away) I hope it's not contagious.

DL: Hey, stop trying to be funny! That's MY job!

Shadowpaw: (comes back in a towel) Don't EVER do that again, DL. EVER.

DL: Okay…

Shadowpaw: …

DL: (looks around at everyone staring at her) What?

Kagome: I don't know! You're the author!

_Boom!_

DL: (standing over Kagome, who is now on the floor twitching) And right now YOU'RE the result of getting me angry. My wrath is not gentle.

Sesshoumaru: Are you sure we haven't met before?

DL: (face faults, thinking) Uhh… (shrugs) I don't know. Maybe in a previous lifetime?

Sesshoumaru: Yes. I probably slaughtered your entire village.

DL: Yeah, and I probably tried to seek out revenge.

Sesshoumaru: Indeed.

Everyone other than DL and Sessh: …(sweatdrops)

Sessh and DL: What?


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **Inuyasha does _not _belong to me. If it did, would I be here right now, or would I be in Oahu, Hawaii enjoying my (_rich_)vacation?

_One who asks never loses his way. _–** A Yoruba (Nigeria) Proverb**

Kagome walked into the backyard, wearing the 'street' outfit from her shopping trip, with the ripped jeans and the white tank top with the winged heart and the cursive 'Angel' on the front. She was humming a joyful tune as she skipped towards the building. _I can't believe how easy school has been lately!_ She smiled to herself, remembering the high scores on all of her tests. _97, 89, 93, 90, and a 95.5! I'm doing well! _She giggled and twirled around like a ballerina. She was so happy, she felt like singing!

"_Fall is here, hear the yell. Back to school, ring the bell_." She sang The White Stripes as she leaned against the wall of one of the buildings, although she wasn't paying attention to which one. "_Brand new shoes, walking blues. Climb the fence, book and pens. I can tell that we are gonna be friends._"

She smiled remembering her first day of school – _ever_. In Kindergarten, she had met her future friends Ayumi, Eri, and Yuka. They all became a little group, growing up with so many inside jokes and being as closely-knit as…well, as the band was. They seemed to have been friends for a long time as well. There were still many things she had to learn about them, and there were things they couldn't understand about her. It was going to take a while until she was with them like she was with her childhood friends. It might even take…_years._

She sighed and decided not to think about it. After all, they were still her friends, and to think about them like that wasn't something a friend would do. "Alright!" She got a determined look on her face, and she told herself, "No matter what, stick to your friends!"

_That's the Golden Rule! _She laughed and shook her head. _The other Golden Rule is to not talk to myself like that!_ She turned to the building she was leaning on and opened the door, expecting to see the band waiting for her.

"…Hm?"

She looked around the building; instead of where instruments and microphones would be, there was a desk with a laptop and papers piled on top of it, with a rolling chair in front of it. Metal cabinets and other tables were against the wall, with lots of room still left in the center of the floor. Absentmindedly, she commented that it would look great with a new paint job and a bit of organization. The newspapers and stacks of documents littered every square inch of table space, and there were even stacks on top of the cabinets. It looked like an office where someone took care of business.

"…Hmm…I must have walked into the wrong building." She scowled at herself for being so blind. She should have at least noticed the white sign (that she _now _noticed) that clearly said 'keep out' in neat red paint. She sighed and walked back out, but she took one last glance in there. "I wonder who uses this building." She shut the door carefully, as if afraid to make any noise, and turned around…

…only to walk into something.

"Oof!" She stumbled back, the unexpected collision sending her mind reeling as she held her head. "I'm _definitely _going to feel _that _in the morning…"

"What are you doing here?"

"_Eep!_" Kagome jumped at the voice, and she slowly looked up to see the inu youkai towering over her. She gulped slightly at the angry look in his eyes and mumbled, "Well, I, uhh, I was looking for the band and –"

"They're not in there," He spoke coldly, cutting her off. She bit her lip and said, "Yeah, I know that now, but when I was walking in –"

"Don't enter this building again."

She watched in shock as he turned on his heels and walked away from her, his tail flowing from his shoulder like a fluffy cloud. After a moment of standing there, she shook her head to break the spell and found her way to her original destination, all the while fuming, _who does he think he is? He just comes up to me and is all cruel and, and all 'they're not in there', and then he leaves me standing there like…like… _She growled as she opened the door, and the band looked up at her expecting to see their normal, happy Kagome. Instead, they got a furious black-haired woman who stomped into the room and grabbed a seat to sit down in and slump slightly, her arms crossed over her chest. She had a fury in her eyes that dared anyone (hell, even Sesshoumaru) to try to dowse it.

Sango tilted her head at her friend like an inquisitive Buyo. "Umm…Kagome-chan?" She frowned when she did not answer, and she looked at the band members with a questioning look on her face only to find them looking as confused as she was. She turned back to her and repeated, "Kagome?"

"I'm fine…" She muttered, still looking rather irked. Sango sighed, knowing that she should leave her alone for a while, and looked up at Inuyasha. He just shrugged and picked up his guitar, made sure every string was tuned right, before they began trying out one of their new songs.

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Sesshoumaru kept glancing at the screen as he typed, his thoughts going over multiple things at once. His father, school, his annoying brother, the newspaper, the report he was typing now, and…

He sighed and looked at the 'buddy list' (as it is called), muttering, "She's being awfully quiet this time."

Not that he was sad. Oh, no. Quite the opposite. If he wasn't Sesshoumaru, he would be jumping for joy right about now. But, it was strange to be online with Kagome and _not _have a conversation with her somehow, whether she started it or not. Of course, she's always started their conversations. Which was why he wasn't talking to her now. She hadn't spoken to him at all, even after she got home. No messages with a little 'hey' or a grinning dog smiling at him.

Not a one.

_Why should I worry?_ He grumbled about important things and went back to his business, trying to ignore the silence as he paid attention to the job at hand. He tried to focus on the sounds of his keyboard clacking, the creak of his chair when he repositioned himself, the slight vibration of music coming from the house. _Anything_. Anything _but _the god awful quiet that filled the room. He scoffed at something on the report and fixed it, then glanced again at the dog icon that represented 'KagChanOX'. The icon was the face of a white Border Collie with a dab of black on the snout, with one blue eye and one a deep brown staring at him intelligently. (Or, at least, as intelligent as a youkai can imagine a dog would look)

_What is with her and dogs?_

Then, a knock at the door made him tear from his work and sniff the air for a scent. After he caught it, he growled, "I do not wish to speak to you, Inuyasha."

"I've got to ask you something."

The inu youkai narrowed his eyes, but decided he might as well answer it now before he started to yell and give him a headache. He silently walked across the room and opened the door, looking down at his half-brother. "What do you want?" He said tiredly, not wanting to deal with the hanyou's antics at the moment.

"Well…" He sighed and asked him, "Has Kagome messaged you since she went home?" He rubbed his arm nervously, looking down at the ground under his brother's feet. "The others have tried to talk to her, but she won't answer, not even to me. We just get her away message."

_She's not talking to them, either? _He kept his surprise behind his mask, however, as he said rather bored, "No, she has not."

Inuyasha looked at his brother standing over him, his lips a tight line, and something struck him as odd. _I passed him as he walked over to father's shed, and then moments later Kagome comes back from that direction in a 'pissed off' mode… _Putting two and two together, he asked carefully, "Did you get her mad?"

Sesshoumaru glared down at him, wondering why he must pester him about _his _friend. "I do not know, nor do I care." He went to close the door, but then Inuyasha stuck his shoe in between the door and the frame and growled, "Now wait just a damn minute!" He returned the glower his brother gave him fiercely. "She's mad at you, and now she's blowing _us_ off! You need to apologize!"

"I do not apologize; to you, to her, or to _anyone_." He tried once more to close the door, but when Inuyasha kept his ground firmly he scoffed and left it open, sitting back in his chair and continuing with his typing. He tried to ignore the eyes attempting to glare a hole into his head like he usually did when he got this way. His brother would eventually stomp off, cursing him to oblivion. But he could not ignore his brother's next unexpected words:

"And to think she thought of you as a friend."

Sesshoumaru stopped, his fingers frozen over the keyboard. He did not turn around to face him, but he did say questioningly, "A friend?"

"Yeah, a _friend_." His half-brother's normal loathing was increased threefold as he spat, "She told me that, no matter what, she would try to help out her friends. It's too bad she can't expect the same from _you._" He then turned away, slamming the door behind him as he stomped off angrily. The silence that he left was a bit unnerving as he actually thought over what he said.

_She wants to be able to help others, and yet she does not want any assistance for herself. _His mind wandered, trying to find some reasoning in her actions. _How can a human such as her go on like that? To only want to give, without ever receiving._ He put his elbow on the desk and propped up his chin with his hand. _What could possibly drive her to do such selfless acts?_

As he sat there in his thoughts, memories from the 'karaoke night' came back to him. _'It's hard to explain'…'I made it when my mother and father were fighting, before they divorced'…'After they broke up, he had a heart attack'…'That's alright'…'Me and Mom and Souta are still a family.'_

_What reason does __**that **__give? _He frowned, tapping his chin thoughtfully with his finger. _Such negativity would normally cause a badly-influenced lifestyle. So why is she different?_

'_And you're always so happy and cheerful…I envy you, but I also pity you.'_

_To think a human would give herself up for others like that, as if her life meant nothing…_

'_She told me that, no matter what, she would try to help out her friends.'_

He watched the computer, unconsciously staring at Kagome's username. Sometimes when she talked to him (or Inuyasha, as he was informed by the hanyou), she would ask them about what their father was like. The inu youkai's usual replies to that would be…slightly negative. He thought of his father as a soft-hearted fool, although he did respect him. In fact, he respected his father a great deal. He did not hold a grudge against him either, but he did not approve of many things he did. He also couldn't believe that he caused the existence of his hanyou brother. He liked to distance himself from them, not caring for any 'quality time', as his father would put it. He wondered why she wanted to know so much about his father.

Once, after he finished with some remark about his father and half-brother, he had half expected her to start to vent off about how that was wrong or something else he didn't really care about. Instead, she was quiet for a while, making him wonder if she actually read it. It wasn't until a few minutes later, where he had gone back to doing a report, when she suddenly told him, 'That's sad.'

He frowned at the reply, and he typed in response, 'What do you mean, 'sad'?'

'You don't like your father just because he cares about you and your brother. He only wants the best for you, and for you to understand you don't have to go through life on your own.'

'I don't need any help.' He had growled at the preposterous thought, his eyes flashing red, and he quickly pushed it from his mind as he continued, 'I am strong, therefore I can hold my own.'

'Nobody's _that _strong, Sesshoumaru. Not even a great inu youkai like you could withstand _everything _the world could throw at you.' There was a pause, and then: 'Have you ever felt a little overwhelmed by something, or that the pressure of others is wearing you down?'

'Have you?'

She might have thought of that as dodging the question, but either way she once again didn't respond for a long time. He narrowed his eyes at the computer, secretly hoping she could feel his gaze on her. _Must it take that human so long to respond? _Sesshoumaru was getting tired of her doing that and typed, 'Speak now, or forever hold your peace.'

'Alright, impatient!' He smirked at her sudden flare of temper, wondering if somehow she was related to his brother. _That would explain some things… _

'Sometimes, the world gets a bit harder to deal with, like when my little brother tries to annoy me with his pranks (which always end up getting me wet somehow). Sometimes school gets hard when I don't have my best friends around or I fall behind in my grades. And sometimes it just gets hard to deal with myself, knowing that I've failed at so many things and made so many mistakes.'

She paused once more for a moment to think, before she continued typing. 'But I know that doesn't matter. No one can ever be perfect, and neither will I. I cannot hold the world on my shoulders, but I can certainly try!'

''Hold the world on your shoulders'? A strange thing to say.'

'Well, that's us humans; strange. Creatures that hate and love, grieve and enjoy, lose and gain. We are what we are.'

_Hmm… _He came back to the present, an idea forming in his mind. He was hesitant to grab the mouse, however, and he stared at the screen for a while more. _I cannot believe I am going to do this… _He inhaled deeply and sighed, before he opened up a window and began to type.

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Kagome lay on her bed, staring up at the ceiling thoughtfully, until she heard another jingle from her computer. She glanced at it, expecting it to be another from Sango or Inuyasha.

Instead, she gaped to see that 'AlmightyInuKing' had sent her a message. She stared at it for a moment more, shock making her bottom jaw drop, before she shook her head and slowly walked over to the computer. She sat down gingerly, as if afraid the chair would bite her otherwise, and she carefully clicked on the box.

'Are you alive?'

She scoffed crossly, but she couldn't help but smile at the instant message he had gotten afterwards telling him she was 'away'. It read:

'Sorry, but it seems that Kagome has suffered from a disease called 'ignore-you-itis', and it is recommended that you leave her alone for the next millennium.'

She shook her head, remembering where she had gotten it from. She had been in fifth grade, hanging out with her childhood friends, when this boy had walked up and started bugging her. The other three had said almost the exact same thing, and the funny part was that he left her alone after that! That had been her away message ever since, in honor of their 'brave' actions.

After she turned it off momentarily, she asked, 'Why do _you _care?' She huffed to herself, "You might as well have told me to _die _earlier…"

'I do not.' She glared at the message, reading as he went on, 'But your friends are worried. The hanyou bothered me hoping you had at least talked to someone.'

'Well, now I have.' She went to put the away message back on, but then another window popped up. Inuyasha had messaged her, 'Holy shit! Your away message is off! Hallelujah!' She sighed and messaged a quick 'so?' before leaning back in her chair to think. Then, Sango suddenly popped up, saying, 'Are you alright, Kagome-chan?' She put a crying cat smilie (in honor of Kirara) beside it, and she couldn't help but shake her head at them.

_At least they're __**trying **__to be nice to me…_ She thought with a glare at Sesshoumaru's window. Then, she realized that he had also sent a message when she wasn't paying attention. 'That other human of yours has gotten my username. Did you give it to her?'

Kagome laughed, and she could imagine how angry he was as she replied, 'No, I haven't. You should probably ask your brother that.' Then, she frowned and asked, 'Wait a minute, she's messaging _you?_'

'Yes, she is. She says she wants to know what I've done to you and she'll kill me unless I fix it.'

'Yep, that's Sango.' She quietly laughed to herself, and she had half a mind to put a 'lol' with her reply. Then, she remembered she was supposed to be angry with him, and she growled and told him, 'Tell her I'm fine, but I don't feel like talking right now.' She then put up her away message and got out of her chair, laying down on her bed with her face in her pillow. "_Make the world go away…_" She sang, though a bit muffled through the stuffing. Buyo meowed at her, her eyes watching her curiously while her tail flicked from side to side.

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_Damn! _He glared at the little alert that notified him (and everyone else) that she had gone back 'away'. _She cannot order me around! This isn't worth my time…that human…_ He shook his head and quickly dismissed the idea of leaving her alone. _I've already started, so I might as well finish it. _He growled angrily, "I will _not _give up that easily." He went to his list of options and clicked on 'blocked users'. After tweaking a few things, he sent to his hanyou brother, 'Give me the phone number of that wench.'

There was a moment of silence after that, before he sent, 'Holy shit, you're talking to _me?_'

'Cut the pleasantries, _hanyou_, and give me that number.'

'Why?' Before he could respond, he answered his own question, 'Oh, well _doi!_ (smacks forehead) Why didn't _I _think of that?'

'Why don't you think?' was the inu youkai's immediate response, and his brother asked him, 'Do you want the number or not?'

'Yes.'

'Alright…hold on…'

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_Ring, ring!_

Mama looked at the phone on the kitchen counter. She frowned. _That's not a familiar number…_

She carefully picked it up and said, "Hello? Higurashi residence." She listened to the person on the other line. "No, this is her mother. Yes? …Yes, she is here…I see…hmm…" She glanced up the stairs at her daughter's room. "Really? She seemed fine when she came home…yes, indeed…alright."

She was quiet for a moment, and then a wonderful idea came to her. "How about I give you her cell? It would be best to call her there, if you ever need to of course."

She relayed the numbers into the receiver, and then smiled. "Alright…you're welcome. I would like to meet you; I've heard a lot from her and your brother…" She laughed quietly and nodded, although she knew the person on the other end wouldn't see it. "Yes, I'm sure. Don't be a stranger, now. Good-bye, dear."

She hung up with a sigh, a wistful smile on her face. _That reminds me of her father… _She looked at the phone and nodded for some reason. "He really was a caring man."

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Kagome was half-asleep when the cell phone under her stomach vibrated. She jumped slightly, scaring Buyo off of the bed, but then groggily picked it up and answered sleepily, "Hello…"

"You're mother sounds just like you."

"_Aah!_" She let go off the phone as if it would burn her, and it bounced once before it fell off of the bed, nearly clubbing poor Buyo in the head. She scampered around the bed and leapt up as far away from Kagome as possible, meowing indignantly. She stared at her cell, her heart hammering against her chest, as she wondered how he had gotten her number. _Was he the one Mama was talking to earlier? _She had vaguely heard a little bit of her mother's conversation when she was dozing off. Now she was wide awake, and the emotions battling in her mind were surprise, anger, and curiosity.

Finally, curiosity won the battle, and as she leaned over to pick her cell back up she mumbled, "Curiosity killed the cat." Buyo tilted her head at the human as she carefully put the phone up to her ear and said, "What do _you _want?" She didn't sound as angry as she wanted to be, but she cast it aside as she listened to his voice.

"You have been ignoring everyone, and now they are worried and asking _me _for the reason why." She heard a slight shuffle and a small sigh before he continued, "Unfortunately, that question is difficult to answer if I do not even know the answer myself."

Kagome scoffed and said, "It's not like you even _care _what I think. I'm just a lowly human." She swung her legs over the side of her bed and crossed one over the other. "You're just trying to get them off of your back."

"I am _trying _to get you to talk to them before they barge into your house to find out what's wrong."

"Then why don't _you _tell them?" She gave him a 'hmph' and said, "After all, you _know _that I was _sneaking_ around in that building with the 'keep out' sign on it. You know _everything_."

"You are starting to sound like my half-brother."

"Maybe it's because he spends more time with me and treats me nicer than you do!" She didn't mean to raise her voice, but he was getting her riled up again. "At least he _appreciates _having someone talk to him. He can _listen _to me without cutting in."

"Kagome –"

"I don't care!" She interrupted him, ignoring the small growl coming from the phone. "I don't want to hear any excuses."

"I do _not _give excuses."

"Then what _do _you give?" She glared at the phone, wishing that that could go through as well. "I haven't exactly seen anything _nice –_"

A knock on the door stopped her, and she sighed and said, her voice back to normal, "Not now, Souta, I'm busy."

"It's not Souta. The girls are on the phone."

She frowned as she held her cell a little away from her mouth. "Which ones?"

"Ayumi, Yuka, and –"

"Oh, _them!_ Okay, hold on, Mama." She put the phone back against her ear and hissed, "I've got to go. And I _don't_ want –"

"Do _not_ hang up on me."

She growled, "Fine! I'll put you on hold." Before he could protest, she pressed a button and smiled triumphantly as she left it on the bed and walked over towards her door. _There! That'll teach you!_ She opened it to see her mother holding the phone away from her ear, wincing at the yelling coming from the other end. She smiled at Kagome as she pressed a button before she handed her the phone and mouthed, "The volume's turned down." She quietly thanked Mama and returned to her room. She lay down on her bed, her head less than a foot away from her discarded phone (where she was sure an angry youkai waited for her return), and carefully put the phone to her ear. "…Hello?"

"_Aah! Kag-girl!_"

She immediately held it out at arms length, cursing to herself, "They're always screaming! Great Kami-sama, just think if my ears were sensitive like S…" She stopped. She was just about to say 'Sesshoumaru's', but she huffed and instead waited until they had calmed down before she asked them, "What's up? I haven't talked to you guys in, like, for_ever!_"

"Well, that would be because you never _answer!_" All three of them said angrily. Kagome chuckled nervously and said, "Oh, really? I…haven't noticed…"

"Well, of _course_ not! Otherwise you would have answered and we wouldn't be mad, now, would we?" Kagome sighed and admitted reluctantly, "Alright, you guys have a point…I've been…preoccupied."

"Is it that hunk again?" Of course, that was Ayumi's voice. _She was always the romantic one. _She scoffed and said, "_No._"

"That sounds like a 'yes' to me."

"Well, it isn't!" She growled, and she waited for them to say something else about it and tease her further. But they were silent…which was creepy. Her childhood friends? Be _quiet?_ "Hello? Ayumi? Yuka? Eri?"

"You just growled!" She heard Eri exclaim as the other two giggled. Kagome blinked. "Growl? I did?" All three of them laughed, "Yes!" The raven-haired teenager scowled at the three as they kept giggling and defended, "Well, it's not _my _fault! I've had bad influences…"

"Then why do you constantly hang _out _with such bad influences, _hm?_"

"_I_…" She stopped before she could get mad at them. "…I really don't know."

"Is it because of that bad boy, Inuyasha?"

"Or that lecher bass player, Miroku?"

"Or that mysterious and handsome one, Sesshoumaru?"

"_No, no (eww), and __**NO!**_" She growled at them again, and set off another of round of laughs from them. She sighed and started to massage her temples as she muttered, "They're my friends! Well…" She stopped. "Maybe not all of them…"

"What? What do you mean, Kagome?"

"Uh, nothing!" She tried to sound cheerful so as to not worry them. "How have you guys been?"

"_Terrible!_"

Kagome laughed as she imagined them pouting and said, "Don't worry, we can still hang out! Ooh!" She snapped her fingers as an idea came to mind. "How would you like to meet my new friends, like at a picnic or something?"

"_Really?_" They all screamed again, and Kagome held the phone away from her ear as she said, "Yeah, really!" She thought about it for a while as she waited for them to stop screaming, but as she put it back to her ear Ayumi asked, "So we can meet the hunk brothers?"

She scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Sure, whatever."

They were quiet for a moment, until Yuka's concerned voice spoke up, "Are you okay, Kag-girl?"

"Yeah!" She tried to sound convincing, but it obviously didn't fool them as they asked simultaneously, "Okay, what happened?"

"Nothing…happened." She sighed. "It's nothing, really…"

"What's wrong, Kagome?" She could tell they were worried when they used her name instead of her nickname. "You can tell us _anything._"

_Sango had said the same thing to me…_ She frowned, thinking. "Well…"

"Does it have something to do with the brothers?"

Kagome's silence pretty much answered that question. She couldn't find anything to say, really. They continued, "Was it the one with the bad temper?"

"They _both _have bad tempers…" She muttered, too low for them to hear.

"Or was it Mr. Mysterious-and-Superior?"

"Umm…can I have a lifeline?"

"_Kagome!_"

"Alright!" She winced, her head ringing after all of their yelling. "It was Sesshoumaru. He just…got me mad today. No biggie."

"It _is _a biggie, since you can't say anything about him without getting angry."

"I can't even _think _about him without getting angry, you mean."

"Aww, Kag-girl!" Ayumi started, and immediately the other three groaned. _She's going to start one of her crazed-romantic plots of hers again._ It was funny, since Yuka whispered 'here comes another one of her _love theories_' (basically the same thing) before the excited girl started,"He's just trying to act like he really doesn't care to cover his _true_ feelings!"

"_What _feelings?" She growled angrily, giving a small 'hmph' before she let her friend continue.

"He could just be too afraid to reveal how he feels about you, and he's scared of you finding out so he acts all mean and cold and stuff!" She sighed dreamily. "Don't you see, Kagome?"

"_No,_ actually," she glanced at the phone beside her and sighed regretfully. "I should go, though; he's still on hold and –"

"You _called _him after he got you mad?"

"No! He called _me!_" Before Ayumi could say anything, she quickly explained, "The others, including his brother, were nagging on him about it, and he called so he could get them off of his back!"

"Hmm…I'm not so sure about that…"

"Well, _I am, _Ayumi. I've gotta go." She smiled slightly as they all yelled 'good-bye' before she pressed the end button. She sighed and shook her head, muttering, "What will I ever do with those three?" She laughed, since she knew their exact answer: '_love us, hug us, and hang with us forever!_' "They've certainly been there for me in the worse of times, though…" She sighed as she put her hands behind her head and thought back to all of times they had stuck up for her, back in elementary school and ever since then…

…

"Oh, _yeah!_" She snapped out of her daydreams after she remembered that Sesshoumaru was on hold still. _Well, he's probably hung up by now…_ She picked it up and went to get him off of hold when she noticed something…

_He __**wasn't **__on hold?!? _She looked at it in shock, wondering why it hadn't activated. Instead, it was on 'mute', but she knew perfectly well that it would only mute his side of the conversation, leaving her… _Did he…hear __**everything?!?**_She slowly put it up to her ear and, after a brief hesitation and pressing the button, said quietly, "Hello?"

"Were those your friends? They scream too much."

"Crap…" She muttered under her breath, before she answered, "Uhh, well, yeah…"

"The same ones who gave you that necklace?"

"Yeah, they – _wait_," She frowned, "how did you know?"

"My brother can be useful, at times."

"Oh…" She chuckled nervously. "So, did you hear _everything?_"

"Why are we referred to as the 'hunk brothers'?"

_Shit!_ "Umm…well…I…uhh…"

She heard him chuckle, and although it was actually a rare and wonderful thing to hear (he had never laughed before, but his voice was as handsome as himself), she was insulted by it. "What's so funny? _I'm _not the one that said that!"

"But how would they know what I look like?"

"Well…I guess they kind of overreacted at my descriptions…" She bit her lip as she thought, _shit…there goes my supposed fury… _She scowled as her face turned red. _Why am I blushing? Dammit all!_

"Out of curiosity, why do you seem to be fascinated with dogs?"

She was about to yell at him, but then she realized that he wasn't talking about himself or his brother. He meant the actual animal. "Oh…well, I used to have a dog. But, he died of cancer when I was twelve."

"Was he a Border Collie?"

She glanced at her icon on the computer and smiled sadly. "My icon is actually a picture of him. His name was Max." She sighed. "He was one of my best friends."

At that moment, Buyo decided to leap up and lay down on her stomach. She smiled at the feline and petted her absentmindedly as she said, "All we have left is our lazy cat, Buyo." It seemed said cat could understand her, for she meowed crossly at her as if she had hurt her. She giggled at the feline and scolded playfully, "But you are, you fat cat, you!" She scratched her behind the ear, and her cat-fury was put off as she began to purr.

"You didn't buy another one?"

"No…" She sighed as she stared at the ceiling, still scratching Buyo's ear. "I was just too sad to try to bond with another dog. No one could replace my Maxie."

Sesshoumaru was quiet as she thought about her deceased dog. _That's not the __**only **__reason, though… _She sighed, trying to reminisce all of those fuzzy memories. _My dad picked Max out…and he died a little after dad did…_

_Nothing could replace him, either…_

"Kagome?"

She snapped to attention when she realized he had said her name several times. "Yes?"

"When is your birthday?"

At first, she didn't understand what he was talking about, but then she thought about it, and she stuttered, "Well, it's three weeks from now, but we're going to celebrate a few days early –"

"Why?"

She was thrown off by the question, and it took her a moment to snap out of it and answer him. "We're going on a short vacation for my birthday. It's already been notified to the school board." They were both quiet after that last comment, letting Kagome wonder why he wanted to know. _I mean, he doesn't __**care**__ at __**all **__about me…right? _Her fingers played with Buyo's tail, her eyes wandering over to the game she had left beside her computer. _I wonder when his birthday is…should I get him something?_

She shook her head and scowled at herself. _No! He's just a jerk! He's not going to be nice to me, so why should I be nice to him? _She crossed her arms, determined to be angry at him for a while longer. She wasn't mad often, but when she was it would take a while to cool off. But…

_I'm just too nice of a person. _She sighed, knowing this couldn't go on forever. _I forgive and forget __**way **__too easily…_ She scowled at the phone, wishing that the ground would devour him up and all of his hotness…wait, did she just _think_ that? _Gah!_ "Bad Kagome!" She whacked herself, her hand making a loud _smack_ing sound against her skin. "_Oww!_"She bit her tongue to stop her from yelling out loud. _That actually hurt!_

"Are you alright?"

"Wha? Oh, yeah!" She chuckled nervously, although she mentally scolded herself for doing that. _Stupid, stupid, stupid, __**stupid!**_She couldn't believe that she had done that when the inu youkai could _obviously _hear anything she said or did. It was stupid to try to whisper or _anything _when he was around. She vaguely wondered as Buyo leapt off of her if it ran in the family, and if Inuyasha could –

Then, she realized what he had said.

_He…he asked if I was…alright? _She covered the phone so she could take a deep breath unnoticed, and then uncovered it to ask him, "Did you just…ask if I was okay?" She bit her lip, now wondering if she should really have asked. It would seem rude to do so, and she wondered if he would get angry with her. Wait, why did she care? He was a jerk…a big, mean…handsome…strong…_jerk!_ With great hair!

"Yes…"

She was stunned into silence, her mouth opened slightly. If Inuyasha had seen her at that moment, he would say that she might choke on a fly if she wasn't careful. But she wasn't thinking about him right now, and he wasn't there _anyways_. _He…he really __**did**__ want to know? _She was amazed, wondering how he had suddenly changed from the insensible jerk from earlier into someone…_different_. This wasn't Sesshoumaru at _all._

"Kagome?"

She straightened up quickly and told him, "I'm here!" _I can't believe I did that __**again!**_"I just…was surprised." She twirled a strand of her hair nervously with her fingers. "I didn't think you…really cared…that's all."

"Really?"

She nodded, but after a moment she scowled at herself for doing that. It wasn't like he could hear her do _that!_ "Yeah…"

"But, I believe that…" He paused for a moment, as if thinking over something. "…I thought that was what friends were for."

She gasped loudly, not really caring if he heard. _He…he… _She covered her mouth, her eyes wide with astonishment. _He…he said…said we…we're…_

"We're…_friends?_"

She heard him exhale slowly, almost like a sigh except it was a bit longer, like he had been holding it or something like that. He answered in his normal, calm voice, "Yes. We are."

She was stunned into silence again. _He said that…we were…_ She couldn't believe it. Even though it was coming from his own mouth, and she heard it loud and clear, it was just too…too…

What _was _it?

Surprising. Yes, it was very, _very _surprising. And shocking. As well as mind-blowing. Okay, there was a pattern there, but it was! The inu youkai, the grand Sesshoumaru, the 'Almighty Inu King'…

…had said they were friends.

"_Eeeeeh!_"

She squealed loudly, her excitement bubbling forth as she jumped up and did a little dance. _Yeah! Yeah! I've got a hot – I mean, he said I'm his friend! He said __**I **__was __**his **__**friend!**__ Ya__**hoooooo!**_

As she tried to calm down a few minutes later, the youkai on the other end hissed painfully, "Can you refrain from screaming in my ear next time?"

"Oh, _I'm __**so **__sorry!_" She apologized quickly, her joy momentarily sobered. She breathed in deeply, and gave a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry…" She looked down at the ground, thinking for a long time. _So, he really __**is **__my friend…_

Her mouth went ear-to-ear in a smile, her eyes twinkling. "But I'm just so _happy!_"

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"Come on, guys!" Kagome pulled Ayumi, Eri, and Yuka excitedly towards the meadow they had picked out for the picnic. "They're this way!"

She had told the band and the others about the picnic idea, and they had agreed wholeheartedly. Well, everyone but Sesshoumaru. Although the statement that he was her friend was clearly still in affect, he did not like the idea of meeting the girls. Kagome promised that they would be on their _best behavior_, and after a while of her begging and pleading with him he had sighed reluctantly and said he would do so _only _if it would stop her whining. She had then squealed happily and hugged him with a big 'thanks!', despite the fact she had said before she wouldn't do it again, and then she had quickly let go and apologized profusely as he blinked, still stunned by her sudden touch.

"Where are they?" Eri looked around curiously. "I don't see them…"

"There they are!" Ayumi squealed and pointed over to a huge tree in the meadow, and she swooned and said breathlessly, "Man, they are _hot…_"

Kagome rolled her eyes as the three began to drool, and she waved her hand in front of their faces and teased them, "Hello? I thought you wanted to meet them, not goggle at them from a distance!" She was surprised as all three of them squealed and grabbed her arm to drag her over there, but after a while she quickly slipped out of their grip, laughing at their behavior. She warned them, "Remember what we talked about, alright?"

"_Yeah!_" They all ran over eagerly, and Kagome sighed and smacked her forehead as Sesshoumaru was surrounded by the starry-eyed girls while they asked him millions of questions simultaneously. She stared at him, and a small smile graced her lips as she thought of how adorable he was with the clueless look on his face as he stared at the girls with surprise in his eyes. She shook her head and skipped over to stand before the girls, wagging her finger at them and scolding (lightheartedly), "Now, _what _did I just tell you girls?"

They just sighed dreamily, and Kagome couldn't help but laugh as she led them over to the others, casting a sympathetic glance over her shoulder at the inu youkai as he blinked at them with surprise and mild curiosity. She wondered how it was that she could see what he felt when she looked into his eyes, but she shook it off as she watched the lecherous man with his normal attire (a baggy pair of black pants and a deep royal purple shirt) bow towards them and say, "Are you lovely ladies Kagome-chan's friends we've heard so much about?"

"Ooh, he's such a gentleman!" The three giggled at Miroku as he gave them one of his charming smiles. Kagome could see Sango behind him fuming, her eye twitching and her hands clenched into fists, and she knew before it happened that he was going to get a beat down. A swift punch into the head knocked him over, and she giggled at her angry friend as she dragged the stunned pervert over to the others, on the far side of the band _away_ from the girls, grumbling about 'one day' and 'knock into a coma' and other nasty little things. She ignored the stunned look on her childhood friends' faces and turned towards Inuyasha. "This is Inuyasha, girls!"

They all looked at him, and their excited squeals alerted just how pleased they were as they ran over and overwhelmed him with their chatter. Kagome giggled at the look on his face, somewhat like Sesshoumaru's except with no restraint on showing it. It was easy to see how confused he was, and she decided to leave him to his fate as she sat beside Sakura and Shippou setting up the picnic area. They had already laid out a traditional red-and-white checkered blanket on the grass, and they were just starting to take out the food when the cougar youkai looked up and smiled at her. "Hey, Kagome!"

"Kagome-chan!" Shippou leapt up from his spot and ran over to hug her, and she laughed at his enthusiasm and said, "It's nice to see you, too!" She patted him on the head between his ears, and he smiled up at her and asked, "Wanna help take the food out?"

"Sure!" She let go of the kitsune and giggled as he nearly tripped over a plastic container as he rushed with new vigor to set the picnic up. Sakura chuckled at the sight and said, "He really likes you, doesn't he?"

"Yeah, well, I like him, too!" She smiled at her and nodded. "He's like a little brother to me, but less annoying."

Sakura laughed at this, drawing the attention of the other three girls. They left the poor hanyou and his ears alone and sat down on the blanket, chatting to Kagome about how school had been. They laughed, they scowled, the teased, and they rolled their eyes as Inuyasha watched them with interest. Now that they were leaving him alone, he could hear himself think, and he was thinking of how the four girls seemed to be the closer than he had at first thought. He smiled as they laughed at some inside joke, although it peeved him a little when Sakura laughed as well. _Ah, well, if she knows, than it must be a girl thing. _His suspicions were confirmed when Shippou looked at the group of girls in confusion, wondering what they were talking about. He shook his head with a smirk, but was brought out of his daydreaming when Sesshoumaru walked over beside him. He looked at his hanyou half-brother with a curious look in his golden eyes, and the grinning teenager jerked a finger towards the girls giggling on the picnic blanket.

The inu youkai followed his claw and watched as Kagome talked so fast it was hard for him to understand her. "I-watched-the-movie-with-him-but-it-really-sucked, and then he-tried-to-ask-me-out-again-after-he-gave-me-that-present, but I didn't-want-to-go-on-another-lame-date-with-him-so-I-told-him-no, and he was all-sad-and-pouty-and-like-okay, and I wanted-to-feel-sorry-for-him-but-I-couldn't-since-he-was-just-so-boring, and –" She stopped to take a deep breath, which made everyone other than the three girls sitting before her breathe easier, but Ayumi and the other two knew her enough to know she wouldn't die from lack of oxygen. "So I told-him-maybe-another-time-and-used-the-excuse-that-I-had-homework-to-do, but then he-tried-to-help-me-and-offered-to-come-over-to-help, so I had-to-fake-that-my-mom-was-calling-me-and-he-wondered-how-I-heard-it-and-I-said-it-was-on-vibrate, and then I-ran-out-as-fast-as-I-could-and-barely-got-away!" She took another deep breath, but she only smiled as her friends started to ask her more about it, while the inu brothers stared at her in amazement and Miroku and Shippou just shook their heads, the latter mumbling about 'girl things'.

After a while, Kagome's eyes wandered over to where the boys all stood, talking to each other loud enough so she could hear them as she tuned out the girls' chatter.

"So, what do you think, Inuyasha?" Miroku nodded his head towards the girls and commented, "It seems the girls are having fun."

"Eh, I'm only here for the food." Inuyasha looked up at the clouds and put his arms behind his head as he scoffed, "Who's idea was this, _anyways?_"

"It was Kagome-chan's," the human smiled a little at the hanyou, "and Sakura-chan and the others seem to have liked it a lot."

Inuyasha glanced and noticed the way Miroku was looking at him, and he quickly turned his face away to hide the red on his face as he growled, "Why the hell would _I _care what _she_ thinks?" He crossed his arms and grumbled darkly, ignoring his friend's laughter. He scoffed again and glanced at the cougar youkai, his eyes narrowed as he watched her laugh at something Sango had said about men.

"Watchya doin', Inuyasha?" Shippou stood beside him and tried to see what he was staring at. "Is there something over there?"

"Yeah, sure, Peter Cottontail's over there, nibbling on a carrot." He rolled his eyes, although he smirked when the young kitsune pouted and grumbled, "You're no fun…"

"And _you're _annoying." He grabbed him by his tail, ignoring his pleas and demands to put him down, and shook him a little as if to shake some sense into him. He grinned as the little youkai started to squeal, "The blood's rushing to my _heeeeaaaad!_ Put me _down, _Inuyasha! _Sakura-mama!_"

"_Inuyasha!_"

Immediately, the hanyou dropped Shippou on the ground as the cougar youkai stomped over towards him. He looked at her innocently and said, "What? I was just playing!"

"_I'll _give you _playing!_" She grabbed his ear and jerked down hard, smirking at his yelp of pain, and proceeded to dig her claws into it. He grabbed her arm and pulled it away from his ear, yelling, "_Damn, _wench! Are you trying to rip my ear off or something?!"

"I'll rip a _lot _more off if you don't keep your hands off of Shippou-chan!" Her glare looked as if it could cause Death itself to appear and sweep away anything she saw fit with her gaze. Inuyasha shivered slightly under her harsh ice-blue eyes, and he quickly stuttered, "Look, I-I was just, y-you know, playing with h-him –"

"_Oh, no! __**I **__**know **__what __**playing **__is!_"

_Thwack!_

"_Oww!_"

Sakura smirked as the hanyou held his head gingerly. She taunted him, "_That _was playing!" Walking back to the girls, she swung her hips seductively and eyed him as her devilish smile made him blink and gulp. She laughed at the look on his face and sat down, turning to the girls who had watched the entire scene with awe, and gave them a wink. "So, what were you saying about guys, Kagome-chan?"

It took the raven-haired teenager a moment to realize she was talking to her, and as she got over the shock she mumbled, "Umm, well…I was…" She chuckled nervously as she mentally scolded herself for forgetting what she was saying. Yuka helped her out, though, by squeaking up, "She was saying that guys need to learn how to take a girl out on a date!" She gave Kagome a sympathetic smile as the others startled to babble again, which the teen returned with a bit of embarrassment. Yuka whispered in her ear, "It's okay, Kag-girl! We're here to help you out!"

Kagome nodded, grateful that she had assisted her, and she went back to her conversation with the girls, not noticing the stares of the males a little ways off, especially a certain pair of golden orbs that seemed to flicker with curiosity. However, when she did glance over at them, it disappeared in a flash, and she wondered if it had been a trick of the light as she returned her attention to the conversation at hand as they laughed at something she had missed. She laughed too, knowing that if she didn't the three childhood friends would ask if she was okay. _Better to be safe than sorry…_

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'Hey, Sesshoumaru?'

He looked up at his computer at the sound of a message popping onto the screen to see 'KagChanOX's inquisitive greeting. It was the night right after the 'picnic', although not much eating occurred. It was mostly Inuyasha that devoured the food like an ill-fed pup, and he called the leftovers before anyone could try to stop him (as if they _could/would_). Now, his half-brother sat in his room content with his headphones on, blaring the band's music into his (probably deaf) inu ears, leaving the older brother alone for _once _in his life.

'What is it?' He asked her, wondering why she was bothering him at this time of night. 'Shouldn't you be resting?'

'Hey, you shouldn't be talking!' An angry smilie with its face red and steam coming out of its ears glared back at him. 'What about you and your 'beauty sleep'?'

'I do not need to sleep as much as you humans do,' he answered her casually, because even a clueless human like _her _should have known that. 'Besides, I am working.'

'On what?'

He heaved a sigh at her curious response before he typed bluntly, 'Business.' He did not feel like explaining all that he was suspected to do, and he was sure that she would not like to listen. _Not that her opinion matters in any case, _he thought as he tried to go back to the vanilla folder in his hands. He was unable to, however, because the barking sound that told him she had replied to his statement irritated his ears until he decided to look up after the sixth bark.

'I can tell when someone's giving me a hint to shut up.' The frown of the dog smilie looked disappointed in him, as if expecting better from the 'Almighty Inu King'. He shook his head from the thought and told her, 'I am not saying for you to stop talking. I do not believe you would want me to bore you with what my father would call a 'lecture' about work.'

'So you _do _want to talk to me?' He growled a little at the screen before she continued, 'Alright, fine! Let's talk about something else! Like…' It took her a moment, but she finally asked, 'How old are you?'

'In human years?'

'Sure, why not?'

'I believe around the early twenties.' He waited for her to continue the conversation, but found that she had been stunned into silence. _Well, __**this **__is new…_ Surprised at her quietness, a frown found its way past his eyes and onto his face as he sat in the privacy of his workshop. _If I knew telling her my age would keep her quiet, I would have done so a long time ago… _He was going to ask if she was still there (perhaps she was hungry and went to fill her stomach?) before she suddenly popped up, 'No _way! _Are you _serious?_'

'Yes,' he answered her, puzzled by her incredulity. 'Why would I lie about my age?' He questioned her sanity as he waited for a reply, but then, the more that he thought about it, he wondered if the little human had ever really _had _it in the first place.

'Well…_I don't know!_ But _still…_'

Amused by how surprised she seemed to be, he asked her, 'Are you shocked of the number? I should have known that you would not be able to comprehend anything over two digits.' He didn't know why, but he loved to egg her on. It was amazing to watch how her spitfire would make her react.

'_Hey!_' An angry dog glared at him from the screen once more, although he brushed it off without a second glance. She replied heatedly, 'It's just surprising that you're so _old!_ I should start calling you Grandpa now!' He growled at the smilie that stuck its tongue out at him, and he wondered how her emotions could swing that fast.

'Do that and you will regret it.'

'Yeah, right!' Another dog stuck its tongue out at him. 'You can't get me while I'm over at my house!'

'Unless I come over at night and slit your throat in your sleep.'

'Eww!' The smilie now had one eye twitching, as if appalled at the idea. 'That's disgusting! You wouldn't do that!'

'Either that,' he smirked mischievously at the screen as he typed, 'or I can catch you while you're in the shower.' He chuckled to himself at the nasty replies he got back from her, a few lines of telling him how 'perverted' that was, and about a thousand different smilies that all glared at him threateningly. _What a temper…_ He shook his head at her, wondering when she would stop.

"Sometimes she reminds me of a certain hanyou…"

_Commentaries_

DL: (throws papers into air) alright, I'm done!

Sesshoumaru: Done? With what? Certainly not the story.

DL: Well, _duh! _(rolls eyes) My homework. I haven't been doing it lately! (does a happy dance)

Shippou: Hey, doesn't she kinda seem a bit familiar?

Inuyasha: Hm? (looks at DL dancing) No…

Sango: (looks over at Kagome dancing with DL) Hmm…

Miroku: The bubbling happiness is the same.

Sango: And the hair's nearly identical if you darken DL's.

Shippou: The eyes could be looked over.

Sesshoumaru: And their tempers match perfectly.

DL and Kagome: (look over at the others) Hey! Are you guys talking about us?

Others: No!

DL and Kagome: Good! (continue dancing)

Sesshoumaru: See our point, hanyou?

Inuyasha: Grr, alright, _fine!_ I see a _little _bit of resemblance…

Shippou: Geez, Inuyasha, you're so dense! Even _I _can see – _yipes!_ (runs away from the angry hanyou) _Sakura-mama!_

Sakura: _**Inuyasha!!!**_

Inu-Cast: (sweatdrops at the sight of a cougar youkai chasing an inu hanyou around)

Sesshoumaru: (sighs) He shall never learn if he hasn't already.

DL: Quite right. _Anyways, _I can't _wait _to get started on the next chapter! Who else is _with me!?_

(Silence…)

DL: Umm, guys? (looks around at empty room) Where'd everybody go? (grumbles and walks off)

(After a few moments…)

Shadowpaw: (walks up with tuna in her hands) Hey, did I miss something? Hmm… (shrugs) oh, well! (smirks) That gives me a chance to be a total ass and give spoilers that'll piss DL off! (puts down a sign and walks off, continuing to eat her tuna)

Sign:


End file.
